How Does Marijuana Product Pass Safety Inspection in 2021?

Marijuana has been legally used for medicinal and recreational purposes in most states. The Marijuana Regulatory Agency (MRA) circulated a report named as “Sampling and Testing Technical Guidance for Marijuana Products”  in order to shed light on how to plan and manage a marijuana safety inspection. This report discusses quality assurance of the marijuana product and required testing in detail to ensure its safety for use. According to MRA, it is mandatory to lab-test all marijuana products before selling them to potential consumers. Safety compliance of marijuana products enables consumers to feel confident and trust the products. Below mentioned are the important components of sampling and testing marijuana products.

Quality Assurance of Marijuana Product

According to state’s rules, in order to conduct quality assurance of marijuana products it is necessary to have a laboratory manager having a relevant advanced degree in a medical or laboratory science.  His responsibilities include ensuring the rules and regulations required for conducting lab tests, evaluation of the accuracy and precision of test results, and validation of reporting functions in the monitoring system. All laboratories must follow a Quality Assurance Manual, which highlights the following points:

• Organization and responsibility of Lab
• Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) of Lab
• Field sampling processes
• Instrument calibration procedures
• Analytical workflows and procedures
• Operations of data reduction, validation, reporting, and verification
• Analyzing quality control checks

Mandatory Tests required for marijuana products

There are numerous tests that marijuana products must experience and pass before they are consumed by users. Required tests are listed as follows:

• Moisture content
• Potency analysis
• Tetrahydrocannabinol level
• Tetrahydrocannabinol acid level
• Cannabidiol and cannabidiol acid levels
• Fungicides
• Insecticides
• Metals screening
• Residual solvents levels
• Terpene analysis
• Water activity content
• Foreign matter inspection
• Microbial and mycotoxin screening
• Pesticides
• Chemical residue

Retesting Marijuana Product

According to the rule, laboratories are allowed to re-test marijuana products that have failed in the initial testing phase. The process of retesting is more comprehensive than the initial test. It is compulsory for a failed marijuana product to pass two distinct tests with new samples successively to be used for medicinal or recreational purposes. 

Conclusion

The process of testing marijuana products is extensive for ensuring both safety and quality. The MRA’s main aim is to assure that marijuana products are free of toxic chemicals, harmful bacteria, and toxins. As explained above, marijuana product testing is conducted in a controlled environment thoroughly, following SOPs. Hence, the process is all-inclusive and requires hard work as well as commitment.  It can become more expensive and time consuming if it is not conducted correctly in the first place. Proper knowledge and expertise are needed to test that the marijuana product is safe to use and complies with the laws, rules and regulations of the state.