Why Is It So Important to Have FDA Approval as a CBD Lab or Manufacturer?

Because the U.S. is so far slow to do any real regulation on CBD and other non-cannabis-derived cannabinoid products, there are a lot of products that are, simply put, not up to snuff. Plenty of companies have ridden the coattails of the CBD boom in the last few years in order to see money in their pockets without actually making quality products that are good for consumers. Some, in fact, even put out products that are not what they say they are.

That’s why, to guarantee you’re buying products that are high-quality and safe, we (and most in the industry) heavily insist on buying from producers and manufacturers that provide adequate documentation and have ample certification of their processes’ and products’ quality. Certificates of Analysis, for instance, are one such very important form of proof that the products are A-OK. Every CBD product you buy should have a Certificate of Analysis from a third-party lab. This ensures that someone other than the manufacturer has tested the product for safety and validity and approved it for consumption.

The FDA and monitoring product safety

One other such form of certification actually does come from a federal agency: the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA is an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services that is responsible for safeguarding the health of the public by ensuring the safety and security of any and all drugs, biological products, food, medical devices, and cosmetics that humans or animals in the United States consume, which includes ensuring the safety of those products’ manufacturing facilities. 

According to the FDA’s website, the agency is also responsible for “advancing the public health by helping to speed innovations that make medical products more effective, safer, and more affordable and by helping the public get the accurate, science-based information they need to use medical products and foods to maintain and improve their health.” The premise of this stated mission has caused plenty of CBD experts, medical professionals, and the industry at large to balk, considering how slowly the FDA has addressed and funded (or rather, how much they have not addressed or funded) research of the medical benefits of cannabis and cannabinoid products. 

FDA regulations in place for the hemp and CBD industries

But despite, or perhaps because of, the agency’s glacial pace to take action and set regulations for the CBD industry, it’s all the more important to heed the regulations it does have. And as of the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, that includes FDA registration for hemp farms and processing facilities. Having FDA registration for a business is not just for the sake of compliance and business-owner peace of mind; it also indicates to the public that your facility has been properly inspected and is following guidelines set by the highest body governing food safety. It lets your current and potential clientele know that you’re serious about the product and more serious about their health and safety in consuming it. 

Technically, the 2011 FDA Food Safety Modernization Act in combination with the 2018 Farm Bill effectively requires CBD companies that take part in manufacturing, processing, packaging, or storing their consumable products—in other words, most CBD companies—to register with the FDA. Upon inspection, the FDA determines whether or not the facility is following established current Good Manufacturing Practices, or cGMP. Hemp processors and other non-cannabis-derived, plant-based consumer product companies must abide by the same requirements. To be clear, though, under federal law it is still illegal to add CBD or THC to food or to market CBD products as dietary supplements.

Initially, the FDA had set the requirement that all THC testing on hemp crops be done at labs registered with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration by 2020 as well. However, in February, after industry pushback citing the incredible difficulty of complying with that rule, based on the limited number of DEA-registered labs, the FDA dropped the requirement. As the U.S. Department of Agriculture noted, “We now better understand how the limited number of DEA-registered labs will hinder testing and better understand the associated costs with disposing of product that contains over 0.3% THC could make entering the hemp market too risky,” adding that they reached an agreement with the DEA to provide formal relief from the lab certification process and that they expected the certification process for labs to continue into 2021. As we now near the start of 2021, it would be wise for hemp producers—and therefore, the CBD processors and manufacturers that work with them—to anticipate the certification requirements as previously set forth and do everything they can to ensure their lab is DEA-approved, or that they find one that is. 

Why FDA approval is so important for CBD companies

As you may surmise by this point, it’s beneficial for CBD companies and their consumers to receive FDA approval and registration, plus get tested at a DEA-approved lab, for a host of reasons, but safety and quality are the biggies—and they’re the biggest focuses of CBD Products Inc.’s product line, Cannabinoid Balance. Developed in an FDA-approved facility by a team of innovative scientists and researchers at the forefront of the cannabinoid field, Cannabinoid Balance products are the highest-quality, THC-free, all-natural, and 100% organic CBD and cannabinoid products on the market, complete with third-party lab testing. 

We understand that the immense and rapid growth in the industry has some consumers confused and worried—and not without reason. With Cannabinoid Balance, we wanted to go back to basics, source the from the very finest FDA-registered and approved hemp farms, and guarantee that we could provide our consumers the products 100% worry-free. We’re operating at the highest level with the highest standards in the industry, and because of it, we’re bringing you the highest quality products from start to finish. No question about it.