Oklahoma City, OK: Cannabis sold in medical dispensaries in Oklahoma frequently contains lower quantities of THC than are advertised on the products’ labels, according to reporting from NPR.
An independent laboratory analysis of 15 varieties of cannabis flower obtained at three dispensaries identified discrepancies between the products’ labels and their THC content. In each instance, the products’ advertised THC potency was inflated.
“The average reported THC level of the strains tested is about 24 percent, but the average measured THC number was just over 14 percent,” NPR reported.
Results from the lab analysis were provided to the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority. The agency indicates that it is in the process of improving lab testing regulations and standards.
Oklahoma voters in 2018 approved a statewide ballot initiative permitting the licensed production and retail sale of cannabis for those with a physician’s authorization. The state currently has more licensed cannabis businesses per capita than any other medical-only jurisdiction.
Lab analyses of certain cannabis products sold in other states – including California, Colorado, and Washington – have identified similar incidences of THC inflation.
A recent analysis in the Journal of Cannabis Research of 107 flower samples obtained in California, Colorado, and Oregon reported that nearly 70 percent of the products over-labelled the THC content. However, the authors did not specify whether the samples came from state-licensed or unlicensed retailers.
Full text of the study, “Evaluation of dispensaries’ cannabis flowers for accuracy of labeling cannabinoids content,” appears in the Journal of Cannabis Research.
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