Why is it so Hard to Deliver Consistency in CBD Dosing?

Only 51% of the 47 CBD products that were tested by Leafly & Confidence Analytics provided the CBD dosing promised on the label. This raises an interesting question, why is it so difficult to provide an exact dosage in every capsule, edible, and vape cartridge that delivers the labeled amount of CBD? The president of Bloom Farms, a cannabis organization in California, Sally Nichols, spoke briefly on the situation. Nichols stated, “it’s a brand-new industry, so many of the hemp farmers are sowing their first crops”. CBD products currently exist in an industry that is unregulated, meaning that anyone can fill a tincture bottle or capsule and claim it contains CBD which creates inconsistent CBS dosing between manufacturers and even crops.

3 CBD Market Categories

1. There are currently 3 CBD market categories available for purchase. The most accurate CBD products fall under the Epidiolex category, which are pharmaceutical forms of CBD. Epidiolex products are produced by GW Pharma, which are the only dose-consistent forms of CBD to be approved by the FDA, so far.

2. The second market includes CBD products that contain more than 0.3% THC, which are sold at medical cannabis dispensaries and state-licensed cannabis stores.

3. The third market, products that contain less than 0.3% THC, are available nation-wide at gas stations and convenience stores. CBD products that contain less than 0.3% THC that are available nationwide are the least accurate when it comes to CBD dosing accuracy.

FDA Regulation Coming Soon

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), alarmed by the exploding popularity CBD and the reports of adulterated CBD products, have accelerated the process for establishing CBD dosing regulations.

However, these regulations are not expected to be ready for implementation until early 2020, leaving the majority of consumers in the dark until then.

CBD Products that Contain THC are More Accurately Dosed

A majority of CBD products that are sold at state-licensed dispensaries are subject to strict labeling rules and testing, resulting in increased CBD dosing accuracy. For example, licensed cannabis products in California are required to print the exact amount of CBD and THC on labels, based on lab-tested results. These testing rules and testing rules alike provide consumers with more assurance.