Did you know every CBDfx product comes with an accompanying report from an independent, third-party laboratory? It’s become the standard for top-tier CBD companies to test products at a batch level and publish findings in lab reports, which are called a Certificate of Analysis. Since product standards vary across the CBD industry, lab reports have become a benchmark for consumers to confirm the purity and overall quality of a product.
However, when you first open up a lab report, you may find it confusing or overwhelming. There’s a ton of information to examine. Was the CBD grown safely and without pesticides or GMOs? Are there any toxins in the product? What cannabinoids are present and how many milligrams are in every serving? These are important questions to ask about your CBD product, and that’s why we’ve created this guide to help you make sense of it all.
Quick Hits
• Laboratory reports on CBD and other consumer products are called a Certificate of Analysis (COA)
• A COA is essential for checking a product’s purity and potency
• Never purchase a CBD product unless it comes with a Certificate of Analysis
Why Look at a Lab Report (Certificate of Analysis)?
Every reputable CBD company provides a Certificate of Analysis for each of their products. At CBDfx, we provide a link to every product’s COA right there on the product page. These reports allow you to make an educated decision before you purchase. You can see the exact CBD strength, down to the milligram, and make your own calculation about which product delivers the best bang for your buck. A Certificate of Analysis also allows you to look for the things that are not supposed to be in your product, such as toxins, pesticides, or solvents that may have seeped into the CBD oil.
Transparency is key. By offering customers access to this kind of lab report, companies like CBDfx show that they’re invested in quality control. Think of these reports as a compass, pointing toward companies devoted to creating quality products. And if a CBD company doesn’t provide a Certificate of Analysis? Well, that may be a sign that, at best, they’re not investing in transparency, and at worst, they may have something to hide.
Now that you understand the significance, let’s go over what to look for on a Certificate of Analysis.
Start Here: Cannabinoids
The first and most prominent section of a CBD lab report will detail which cannabinoids are found in the product, usually in milligrams per serving (mg/serving). Cannabinoids are the unique compounds found in the cannabis family of plants. While THC is perhaps the most famous cannabinoid, CBD is equally prevalent and has become a popular wellness supplement over the past decade-plus. Other cannabinoids, such as CBG, are sometimes called out as well on these reports.
To understand this section, you need to know what kind of CBD is in your product: broad spectrum CBD or CBD isolate. Broad spectrum CBD contains natural terpenes and cannabinoids, but it has been filtered to remove all detectable amounts of THC. For products with broad spectrum CBD oil, you should see “ND” in the THC section. ND means “not detected,” stating that any results found were less than the industry standard Method Reporting Limit. CBD isolate contains no cannabinoids other than CBD itself, so this should be the only cannabinoid called out in an isolate product report.
You’ll also find sections about the total CBD and total cannabinoids noted in mg/serving. This is where you can double-check your serving size and what CBD strength you will be getting per serving amount.
Make Sure to Review: Pesticides
Now that you know what is in your CBD product, you’ll also want to find out what isn’t in it. That’s what the remaining sections of the lab report are for. A quality product should be made with quality CBD, and this means scrutinising the sourcing of the CBD oil.
First, check out the section that shows test results for common pesticides. The gold standard for hemp in the industry is CBD oil made from 100% organic hemp. Organic hemp ensures you won’t find the harmful pesticides and fertilisers you would discover in non-organic products.
You can view the list of pesticides and the details of any mass detected in this section. If you are buying an organic CBD oil product, you should see a long column of ND (not detected) and the status marked as “pass” for all tested pesticides.
Recapping Other Categories: Microbials, Mycotoxins, and Heavy Metals
Most companies won’t knowingly sell a product if something unsafe is revealed in a batch test. However, keeping an eye on the lab report can reassure you that your CBD company is actively testing its product.
Here are a few common sections you should review:
- Microbials from the manufacturing process that would cause health problems (salmonella is a common example)
- Mycotoxins produced by molds or fungi in food that may have occurred in the manufacturing process
- Heavy metals (like arsenic, mercury, or lead) that may have been absorbed by the hemp plant during the growing process
- Residual solvents that may be left over from the CBD extraction process (especially if a company uses a solvent, like butane, for extraction rather than clean CO2 extraction)
Final Thoughts on CBD Lab Testing
The CBD industry has grown rapidly over the past decade. While this means consumers have more choices than ever, it also (unfortunately) means that some brands haven’t been around long enough for consumers to understand their practices. A brand may try to cut corners in terms of quality, leading to poorly made or even unsafe products. As a consumer, you don’t want to be ingesting these kinds of CBD products.
A Certificate of Analysis helps to level the playing field. These objective, third-party lab tests ensure transparency and help you make an educated choice every time you make a CBD purchase. We wish you all the best on your wellness journey.
