Book:LIMS Buyer’s Guide for Cannabis Testing Laboratories/Cannabis testing and research: An overview/Why test?

1.3 Why test?

CCE by Draconis- laboratory work on plant essences and cannabinoid material.jpg

The attempts to legalize, regulate, and standardize cannabis, cannabis products, and all the activities surrounding the industry are apparent, but why is laboratory testing of cannabis important? Why test?

First, from a purely research-based perspective, analytical testing of cannabis helps society learn more about the plant and its constituents, and how they positively and negatively affect human health when ingested. Though research has been difficult to accomplish in the U.S. over the years^[1], the long-term lack of understanding about the plant and its effects of use continues to push researchers forward to expand that societal understanding.^[2]^[3] Granted, some countries such as Israel have been at the forefront of cannabis research and testing, with researchers there receiving funding from U.S. companies, as well as the U.S. government.^[4]^[5] Studies and clinical trials from Israeli researchers on autism^[6] and inflammatory bowel disease^[7], as well as the agricultural^[8]^[9], analytical^[10], and broad medical aspects of the plant^[11] continue to move the science forward for everyone. With a new administration steering the helm in the U.S. in 2021, a promise of prioritizing "the research needed to advance science-based federal policies related to the use of marijuana for medical conditions, chronic pain, and disabilities"^[12] remains to be seen, though some in the cannabis industry appear to be cautiously optimistic.^[13]^[14]

Second, similar to how we have mechanisms like laboratory testing in place to ensure the safety of medicines, foods, beverages, and cosmetics for human use, we should be performing similar testing for the human and animal use of cannabis and cannabis-related products. Microbes, heavy metals, pesticides, and solvents that are dangerous to consume—particularly for medical marijuana patients with fragile and weak immune systems—must be identified and quantified through quality control in order to protect public health.^[15]^[16]^[17] Without quality testing and safety oversight, cannabis products can cause sickness or even death.^[18]

Third, growers and sellers of cannabis and cannabis-related products should be held accountable for the claims they make about their products. When growers, sellers, and even the testing laboratories themselves are held accountable, consumer confidence can be gradually built.^[17] This can be difficult, however, given a lack of a federal regulatory framework for both THC-containing and low-THC/high-CBD products. For example, independent testing in 2020 of CBD-containing products found an abysmally low 13 percent of products tested matched their label claims, findings similar to those of a 2020 FDA market survey.^[19] Law firm Keller and Heckman warn that "buyers need to be cautious" concerning the purchase of largely unregulated CBD products^[19], which highlights the difficulty of improving consumer confidence in the face of little regulation. However, most U.S. states that have legalized some form of cannabis have also mandated laboratory testing, not only for the two prior reasons but also to hold accountable those producers and sellers supplying the legal cannabis market with products containing specific cannabinoid amounts.^[17]^[20]

When considering these three points, it's easier to understand the "why" of testing. But what gets tested and how? The next chapter addresses this question, as well as the workflows surrounding the "how."