CBD products found in Colorado dispensaries have until recently been exclusively derived from the cannabis plant and were required to have at least 0.3% THC. While this meant recreational consumers have had some trouble finding THC-free products, it also meant all recreational CBD products were heavily regulated and thoroughly tested for microbials, pesticides, solvents, and heavy metals.
On the flip side, industrial hemp (with less than 0.3% THC) can be grown legally across most of the U.S. As a result, and because such low THC can be isolated and removed from finished products with relative ease, CBD from hemp has been used in a wide array of nationally-available household products, including oils, creams, shampoos, and nutritional supplements.
Under State and Federal law, the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) tests industrial hemp for total THC using Gas Chromatography (GC). When it comes to processing, sale, and distribution of industrial hemp products, the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE) has regulatory authority. Any hemp product manufacturer, extractor, processor, and storage facility must register with the CDPHE (and possibly with the CDA). There are additional requirements hemp companies must follow depending on the products they are producing: food safety, labeling, etc.
Unfortunately, despite hemp’s widespread use, hemp CBD products are not required to undergo testing for heavy metals, pesticides, residual solvents, or microbials in the same way as cannabis. While it’s likely this will change in the coming years, for now consumers are forced to rely on hemp manufacturers, extractors, and processors to conduct all of these tests themselves.
Ironically, this means customers searching for a federally legal, THC-free hemp product have to be even more careful than those consumers purchasing federally prohibited, high THC recreational cannabis.
At Karing Kind, we carefully vet all of the products we sell, whether we produce them in our own lab or purchase them from a trusted local third party.