CannaInsider Tackles CBD Safety with First Badge Program
New CBD Transparency Badge helps companies showcase test results for pesticides, solvents and more, as desire for CBD transparency spikes among consumers
Oct 17, 2019, 08:33 ET
BOULDER, Colo., Oct. 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- CannaInsider today announces the CBD Transparency Badge Program (https://www.cannainsider.com/cbd-transparency/) giving companies for the first time one place to upload test results and receive a badge showcasing their commitment to full product transparency.
"Trust is essential in this blossoming industry," said Matthew Kind, the founder of CannaInsider. "The vast majority of CBD companies do the right thing, and test extensively to ensure consumer safety and health. We feel it's time that the industry's many good actors take advantage of an easy way to show the world that they fully stand behind their products."
Sales of CBD products continue to rocket nationwide, as people buy salves for sore knees, tinctures for anxiety and supplements for sleep. By 2024, according to market research firm BDS Analytics, sales are expected to reach $20 billion. And a Gallup poll in August found that 14 percent of Americans have used CBD, primarily for pain relief, anxiety and sleep.
The science and research community is beginning to pay close attention to CBD. This month, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded $3 million to study pain-relieving properties among cannabinoids, including CBD.
"The treatment of chronic pain has relied heavily on opioids, despite their potential for addiction and overdose and the fact that they often don't work well when used on a long-term basis," said Helene Langevin, MD, the director of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (which is part of the NIH), in a news release. "There's an urgent need for more effective and safer options."
But consumer interest increasingly comes with a catch. They also want to know what's in their products other than the CBD cannabinoid.
Pesticides? Herbicides? Heavy metals? Consumers have no easy way of finding out what's in that bottle of hemp oil.
Until now.
Participation in CannaInsider's new CBD Transparency Badge Program is simple.
- Visit the CBD Transparency Badge Program website.
- Upload required test results.
- Receive a CBD Transparency Badge
- Display it on websites, social media, labels and more
The program gives consumers peace of mind. It provides companies opportunities to satisfy rising consumer desire for transparency. And merchants now have a powerful tool to help consumers shop for CBD in what is a ballooning marketplace.
Current testing scorecard criteria include:
- Microbial contaminants
- Potency
- Terpene profile
- Residual solvents
- Pesticides, Heavy Metals and Mycotoxin
- Declaration of country where hemp was grown
Beginning in 2021, required and up-to-date tests will require all of the above, plus glyphosate testing and a Sustainability Scorecard that will include best practices for energy use, chemical use and adherence to regenerative farming principles.
"This is a great way for businesses to distinguish themselves," said Diane Czarkowski, co-founder of CannaAdvisors and founding member of the National Cannabis Industry Association. "Much of the industrial hemp oil in the marketplace is unsafe, containing things like heavy metals and. Some products don't even contain CBD. I highly encourage all CBD-focused businesses to be completely transparent to consumers about their products."
Matthew Kind is available for interviews to discuss this first-of-its-kind transparency program for the CBD industry.
About CannaInsider
Since 2014 CannaInsider has been the leading business-focused podcast in the cannabis and hemp industries. Each week listeners from more than 77 countries tune-in to hear CannaInsider host Matthew Kind interview cannabis and hemp leaders about their businesses and insights, and to discover the trends that are shaping the industry.
Contact Information:
Douglas Brown
303-241-0141
[email protected]
SOURCE CannaInsider
