Study: Labeling Inaccuracies in Hemp-Derived CBD Products
A recently published review article, originally covered by our sister brand Cannabis Science and Technology, discussed a study about testing for inaccuracies in hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD) products.
Read the original piece from Cannabis Science and Technology here.
Image © adobestock.com/brillianataImage © adobestock.com/brillianata
A recent study found that a high percentage of various types of hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD) products contained inaccurate claims on their labels. The 97 products tested in this study consisted of haircare and cosmetic items, food, drinks, and edibles that were purchased in 2020 in Maryland from both retail stores and online. All the products’ labels claimed they contained CBD or specified amounts of CBD that the product contained.
Using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), the researchers measured the cannabinoid concentration of each product, compared it to the advertised amount, and measured the deviation.
Overall, most of the labels were found to contain inaccurate information regarding CBD content. In particular, 10 products were determined to not contain any CBD.
Some of the other results included (1):
- Of the 71 products with a specific total CBD amount on the label:
- 35 (49%) were underlabeled (>10% more CBD than advertised)
- 27 (38%) were overlabeled (>10% less CBD than advertised)
- 9 (12.7%) were accurately labeled (within ±10% of labeled CBD)
- The median (range) percentage deviations were:
- -53% (-100%-76%) for haircare products
- +18% (-100%-1076%) for cosmetics
- -1% (-100%-4468%) for food/drinks
The products tested included ones that stated claims for third-party testing, though the accuracy of CBD content did not differ significantly between products with and without external testing claims.
“Many products made therapeutic claims or used marketing tactics to seemingly convey they were safe/healthy, but only about one-third included disclaimers that these statements had not been evaluated by the FDA,” the researchers also concluded. “These findings highlight the need for proper regulatory oversight of cannabinoid-containing products to ensure quality assurance and deter misleading or unfounded health claims in product marketing.”
Reference
(1) Dowd, A. N.; Zamarripa, C. A.; Sholler, D. J.; Cone, E. J.; Murphy, T. P.; ElSohly, M.; ElSohly, K.; Gul, W.; Shahzadi, I.; Mullen, L. D.; Winecker, R. E.; Flegel, R. R.; Vandrey, R.; Spindle, T. R. Cannabinoid Content and Label Accuracy of Various Hemp-Derived Haircare, Cosmetic, and Edible Products Available at Retail Stores and Online in the United States. Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research 2024. Advance online publication. DOI: 10.1089/can.2024.0039
Analysis of Pesticides in Foods Using GC–MS/MS: An Interview with José Fernando Huertas-Pérez
December 16th 2024In this LCGC International interview with José Fernando Huertas-Pérez who is a specialist in chemical contaminants analytics and mitigation at the Nestlé Institute for Food Safety and Analytical Sciences at Nestlé Research in Switzerland, In this interview we discuss his recent research work published in Food Chemistry on the subject of a method for quantifying multi-residue pesticides in food matrices using gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS) (1).
Using Chromatography to Study Microplastics in Food: An Interview with Jose Bernal
December 16th 2024LCGC International sat down with Jose Bernal to discuss his latest research in using pyrolysis gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (Py-GC–MS) and other chromatographic techniques in studying microplastics in food analysis.
