Hemp Contaminant Testing
Hemp Contaminant Testing
The 2018 Farm bill brought the hemp prohibition era to an end and with it boosted the possible markets for hemp and hemp-derived products. Along with increasing possibilities come challenges for the industry in the supply chain – from selecting the right seeds all the way to the development of products derived from hemp as well as the responsibility of delivering high quality and safe products to the consumer.
A major concern for any emerging market in the food and dietary supplement industry is the quality of the starting material and eventually that of the final product offered to the consumer. Because of its history, the development of best practices and high-quality standards along the supply chain is critical for the hemp industry. This would go a long way to increasing the confidence of both consumers and law enforcement in hemp products sold in the market.
Hemp Testing Standards
An area that is often neglected in the development of standards is the definition of specifications for contaminants in general and chemical hazards in particular. The Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011 calls out, in addition to microbial contamination, the concern for chemical hazards and requires a risk-based hazard analysis for ingredients used in the manufacture of food. Adapting this practice to hemp-derived products used in food, beverages, and supplements would highly benefit the hemp industry. Based on this approach, the areas of concern for hemp would be contamination from pesticides, heavy metals, mycotoxins, and residual solvents. These contaminants do not pose a hazard at all aspects of the supply chain and a thorough knowledge of the possible sources of these chemical hazards is necessary. In addition, the verification of the reduction to a “safe” level or elimination of these contaminants in the final product is required for the production of a high-quality product.
Bioaccumulation
Hemp is a known phytoremediator which means it readily absorbs contaminants from the soil where it is planted; therefore the risk from exposure to chemical hazards starts at the beginning of the supply chain. Potential growers of hemp need to look at the pesticide residue and heavy metals profile of the acreage they are planning to use for their future crop.
Further down the supply chain, the processors and manufacturers inherit the risk from pesticides and heavy metals as these compounds are not always removed by processing. In some instances, these contaminants can concentrate in the intermediate and final products. In addition, manufacturing processes introduce additional chemical risks namely mycotoxins, solvents, and other chemicals used in processing. Mycotoxins, toxins produced by certain fungi that can cause diseases or death, can be present in the hemp material if mold growth is not controlled during cultivation, harvesting, drying, and storing of the material. Aflatoxins and Ochratoxins are the mycotoxins of most concern in hemp. Solvents and other processing chemicals get added to the list during extraction i.e. in the production of hemp or CBD oil.
Hemp Contaminants Program
All the information above opens the door to the creation of a contaminant program for hemp including microbiological and chemical contaminants. Contaminant programs for growers need to include pesticides and heavy metals on soil and for harvested material; microbiological contaminants, pesticides, heavy metals and mycotoxins (total Aflatoxins and Ochratoxins). For processors and manufacturers, the program needs to include microbiological contaminants, pesticides, heavy metals, mycotoxins, and solvents.
Hemp as an agricultural commodity is an exciting game-changer and while formal regulations are being worked on, it is important that the industry come together in creating best practices and monitoring programs to protect the future of hemp and hemp-derived CBD.