The popularity of CBD has taken the world by storm in recent years. From exciting news stories about promising research findings to the increasing legalization around the world, there’s no doubt that CBD is here to stay.

But along with the rise in the popularity of CBD comes the undeniable increase in low-quality products, false claims, and other quality control issues. 

These days, it seems you can buy CBD anything—CBD gummies, oils, and concentrates are just the beginning. You can also buy topicals like lotions and soaps, scented aromatherapy mists, dog treats, and beverages infused with CBD. With so many options on the market, it’s nearly impossible to know which are the best quality. 

In this article, we’ll explore a few ways you can find safe and high-quality CBD. Keep reading to learn more.

The Importance of Finding High-Quality CBD

Unfortunately, there have been many recent reports of mislabeled CBD products, fraudulent lab data, and other dangerous quality control issues among both unregulated and regulated products. 

A study published by Forbes found that approximately 60% of CBD products were mislabeled. This could mean that consumers are paying $100 for an overpriced bottle of carrier oil that actually contains no CBD at all. 

Or they could be consuming what they believe is a pure CBD product, only to find that it actually contains high levels of THC, the psychoactive compound found in cannabis.

The Danger of CBD Mislabeling

Some of the alarming findings that have emerged in recent years include:

• An FDA study from 2020 found that the labeling of CBD products was more frequently inaccurate than accurate, with nearly 50% of CBD-only products actually containing THC.
• An article published in The Journal of the American Medical Association found that only 30.95% of the products surveyed were accurately labeled.
• A study by the NIH found that there was a significant amount of mislabeling in CBD products with 26% of products containing less than the label indicated.
• A recent U.S. lawsuit alleged that many products that were supposedly tested for contaminants actually failed lab testing for many toxins including heavy metals, yeast, and mold. 

This research shows that if we cannot find a way to buy safe, high-quality CBD, then CBD is not safe to consume. 

It’s critical for all consumers to educate themselves on the methods for locating products they can trust. This will not only protect their health and wallets but also improve the quality of all products on the market by supporting those with adequate quality assurance protocols.

How to Find Out if Your CBD is High Quality

The only way to know if your CBD is high-quality is by purchasing from a reputable brand. The problem is that it’s nearly impossible to glean which brands are reputable these days.

There are a few essential pieces of information required to know if a brand is committed to safety and quality. They are as follows:

• Lab reports: in the cannabis industry, all regulated cannabis or hemp products must have relevant COAs attached and available. Unfortunately, getting trustworthy lab information is more complicated than simply looking it up online. Even if a brand has its COAs available for viewing on its website, they might not be accurate. Lab shopping and fraudulent lab reports do happen. Even if lab reports are authentic, they could be outdated.
• Brand history: FDA and FTC online databases can tell you if a brand has been involved with any suits or claims against them, but they don’t reveal information about whether the issues were resolved. 
• Ingredients and potency: this can be available in lab data, but it can also be validated with verification software like ours. Knowing that the potency of your CBD product is accurate to the label is critical for having a safe experience. 
• Validated and verified claims: any brand can claim to be organic or certified by a governing body. That doesn’t mean they actually are, since there aren’t many measures in place to hold businesses accountable. 

With such a long list of requirements for safe and good quality CBD products, it’s easy to see why consumers have difficulty finding the right options. 

That’s why we made Qredible®. 

Find High-Quality CBD in Qredible®

Qredible is the cannabis industry’s only digital registry of validated and verified brands. 

When we launch our cannabis consumer-facing app in the coming months, customers will be able to see blockchain-secured information about the brands they buy from within a single digital location, read and write reviews, review immutable lab data, and get updates about the quality and status of your favorite brands.

Qredible was designed with consumer safety in mind. If you want to sign up to get notified of our app launch, sign up for our email list.