Most of what’s gone on in the field of medicinal cannabis has been related to simply isolating and/or replicating a specific cannabinoid to get its benefits. In today’s world of cannabis medicine, the new thing is for a customer to order a premium blend of their favorite compounds, because today, you can actually customize your cannabinoids.

Isolating cannabinoids

There’s plenty in the worlds of medicinal cannabis and recreational marijuana that have nothing to do with isolating anything. If a person wants to smoke hemp flowers, or buy a few grams of high-THC weed, they’re getting the whole plant, no isolation needed. However, the fields of medical and recreational cannabis have been more and more reliant on the idea of isolated cannabinoids. CBD is the most popular right now, with CBD oil and vape cartridges flying off store shelves all over the world.

Much like with other forms of pharmaceutical medicine, where we often pop a pill without really thinking what that circular, chalky, perfectly-shaped tablet contains, where it came from, and how it got to be in the form we take it in, we don’t often question how our CBD oil came to be.

Cannabinoids don’t start out as cannabinoids, but rather as acids that must be heated – or decarboxylated – in order to form into the cannabinoids we are familiar with like THC, CBD, and even the rarer CGBV, and THCV. Solvents are then used to separate certain parts. These can include, ethanol, hydrocarbon (butane, propane…), chloroform, light petroleum, and CO2 – which doesn’t leave a residue.

After extraction with one of these solvents, the solution is filtered at least a couple times, generally through something like charcoal. Then it should be made more concentrated, down to about half the volume, using a 2% aqueous sodium sulfate solution. When the solvent is stripped out, and the solution is concentrated, its left as a crude oil. At this point it can even be purified further with redistillation or column chromatography.

Have you gotten swept up in the CBD craze? Careful. It may induce a positive drug test.

That’s according to findings from a clinic trial published last month in the journal JAMA Psychiatry. The findings, which comes via researchers at Harvard, “suggest that patients consistently using full-spectrum, hemp-derived products may have positive test results for THC-COOH on a urinary drug screen,” the authors of the study wrote.

“Despite limitations in sample size and diversity, these findings have important public health implications,” the researchers wrote in their conclusions. “It is often assumed individuals using hemp-derived products will test negative for THC. Current results indicate this may not be true, especially if assays are more sensitive than advertised, underscoring the potential for adverse consequences, including loss of employment and legal or treatment ramifications, despite the legality of hemp-derived products.”

The findings also help fill a gap in what the authors said has been a paucity of research on CBD.

“Despite the growing popularity of cannabidiol (CBD) products, specifically those derived from legal industrial hemp sources,” the authors said, “few studies have directly assessed whether the use of high-CBD products could yield positive results on urinary drug tests assessing cannabis use through the detection of [THC] metabolites.”

Cannabidiol (CBD) is extremely popular right now.

In fact, it is so popular that Google search data for the last few years shows that CBD is searched more often than THC.

For many decades THC was the cannabinoid that most scientists and cannabis enthusiasts focused on, however, that has clearly changed.

Products containing CBD are far more legally available in the global marketplace compared to products containing large amounts of THC.

That, combined with a growing body of peer-reviewed studies that find CBD to be an effective medicine, has resulted in exponential growth in the use of CBD worldwide.

Every serious grower has a set of tools that are used every day to monitor and tend to their crops. If you’re thinking about taking the step from curious cultivator to master grower, there are a handful of tools that will be essential to the plant’s success and using them on a daily basis will ensure that the next (or first) crop will be healthy and bountiful. Check out this list of suggestions below for resources to get you growing with the best of them.

pH Meter

There are a few ways to measure the pH of the nutrient solution with effective pH meters that are inexpensive yet simple to use. You may purchase a vial of litmus fluid to test the pH. Simply take a sample of the nutrient solution and put a few drops in the vial. After shaking it to mix it thoroughly, the color of the nutrient solution changes. Compare this color with the gauge that’s included and that’s the pH.

A more effective but costlier method is to purchase a pH meter, which is recommended if there’s more than one crop being grown. It’s a simple meter to use and can be found at any hydroponic supply store. Fast-growing leafy plants generally like a lower PH in the range of 5.2 to 5.9.

PPM Meter

The concentration of the nutrient solution is measured in parts per million (PPM). This indispensable tool is used every day to monitor and mix the nutrient solution to make sure there aren’t any nutrient deficiencies. Young, established seedlings or rooted clones are generally started at 500 to 600 PPM. This value is increased to 800 to 900 PPM during the peak foliage growth period. During the flowering period, the PPM is raised even higher to 1000 to 1200 PPM. That’s a lot of nutrient. And it’s needed – every drop. It’s at the flowering time that the plant will need the most resources.

24 Hour Timer

In order to have a healthy crop, a lighting cycle must be religiously adhered to. The norm is to have a cycle that has 18 hours with light and six hours without it. This is accomplished with an automatic timer. It’s important to have a setup that allows the night cycle to be absolutely black. It’s recommended to not even enter the room they’re being grown in to check on them during their night cycle.

Down a rural farm road on the outskirts of Bergheim, 40 minutes north of San Antonio, lies the green pasture nurturing Texas' first legal hemp farm. At Texas First Hemp, visitors can take a look inside the farming operation, demystifying some of the stigma and buying samples on their way out.

Owners Jennifer and Austin Ruple were some of the first to receive hemp-growing permits after the Texas Legislature passed House Bill 1325 in June 2019, legalizing hemp farming in Texas. Hemp is a variety of cannabis that contains less than .3% THC, a compound known to produce psychoactive effects. The Ruples primarily focus on cannabidiol, or CBD, a naturally occurring extractable compound found in hemp plants. Hemp has been used in everything from soaps, clothing, and diapers to paper, foods, and building materials.

The Ruples became licensed in spring 2020 just after COVID-19 hit, and they were the first in the state to have seeds planted that would grow into the first legal hemp plants in Texas.

“People think of this industry, and they think long hair and beanies, but it’s all about integrity,” Austin says. “It’s all above-board. It is becoming more popular and so much more mainstream.”

Now that those seeds have blossomed into 8-foot plants with leaves and buds, they’re ready for harvest, and the Ruples have opened the farm to tours. While nearby Fredericksburg attracts wine lovers, people with an appreciation for hemp can go behind the scenes of the process.

Cannabis dispensary professionals are all too familiar with constantly juggling their inventory, customer engagement programs, employee success efforts, and everything in between. On top of the day-to-day grind, dispensaries are under do-or-die pressure to maintain pristine records to stay compliant with local and state policies. If they fail to do so, dispensaries run the risk of being fined up to hundreds of thousands of dollars and potentially having to close up shop.

Two technology-focused entrepreneurs, Cree Robinson and Louis Masensi, are hoping to simplify this process with their new software company touCanna, which automates and connects all of a dispensary’s work in one place.

Origin story

The pair decided to launch into entrepreneurship after years working in tech, and learning that the corporate world wasn’t always welcoming of new ideas. Tired of hearing the words, “Your ideas are great, but that’s just not how we do things here,” they wanted more freedom to create and help make people’s lives easier. So they chose to use their tech skills to empower cannabis dispensaries.

"I was determined to create within spaces where women and people of color had been excluded from or did not have as much opportunity as other groups," says Robinson. "We're both long time believers in cannabis and have seen first hand the power of its healing capabilities, so getting involved was a no-brainer." With set goals and a vision in place by summer 2018, the pair chose to understand and solve dispensary pain points rather than the entire supply chain.

The problem

Dispensary owners and operators face many challenges, from staying on top of the changing laws and making sure they remain compliant, all the way to managing the smallest details of their employee workforce. After analyzing dispensary operations across the country, Robinson and Masensi noticed two things:

CBD products continue to thrive in various industries such as healthcare, cosmetics, hospitality, food, pharmaceuticals, and pet care, among others. Hemp-derived products are expected to saturate huge industries in the years to come; in fact, the CBD market is foreseen to surpass the $20 billion mark by 2024.

This is no surprise at all, as CBD continues to gain popularity ever since the legalization of cannabis as an agricultural crop in the United States. More and more countries are considering the same, so we can all expect the market growth to remain exponential in the next few years.

Producers rely on technology to create leverage in coming up with new and innovative methods. How is technology reshaping the industry now, and what can we expect in the near future?

GMO Cannabis

Genetic engineering has been around for a while now, with food items being bioengineered in different ways; and it is probably just a matter of time before we have genetically-engineered cannabis, as well. CanBreed, an Israel-based company founded in 2017, was able to secure a patent and hold a license to use genetic-editing technology in cannabis products. CanBreed claims that using stable seeds partnered with CRISPR technology, inherent challenges in cannabis farming will be addressed. These challenges include cost, sensitivity to humidity, and genetic instability, to name a few. The company believes that they can help optimize farming by editing specific cannabis genes and traits. CanBreed still has to overcome a lot of hurdles especially in terms of regulation in order to expand, but it is worth noting that such innovation in cannabis farming is now in the works. 

Nano CBD

CBD bioavailability or the amount of CBD in one’s bloodstream as a result of traditional ways of consuming CBD products is very low. That is because CBD is naturally not soluble in water, but soluble in fat. Humans have more water than fat in our system, so most of the CBD taken in are flushed out of the system together with urine, leaving only around 20% of the CBD consumed. Enter, nanotechnology. Nano CBD is being marketed as “water-soluble.” However, that might be erroneous because CBD’s hydrophobic nature cannot change no matter how small you make its particles. But, it is worth noting that nano CBD are small enough to pass through membranes that normal-sized CBD particles cannot penetrate; so, in theory, nanotechnology can increase CBD bioavailability. Although it needs further research, we might be looking at a future where Nano CBD may be favored over regular CBD.

Cannabis has been used for its antimicrobial properties for thousands of years, but only recently have these benefits surfaced in Western medicine. A recent study highlights previously unknown antimicrobial properties of cannabis.

While the study focuses on several cannabinoids, it brings out CBG as a cannabinoid to pay attention to in terms of its antibiotic abilities.

What is CBG?

CBG – cannabigerol – is a cannabinoid of the cannabis plant. Unlike it’s counterparts THC and CBD, it is found in only very small quantities, making up approximately 1% of a harvest-ready plant. Like CBD, and unlike THC, it doesn’t produce a psychoactive effect. CBG comes from its acidic precursor, CBGA. CBGA in turn is converted into cannabinoids like THCA – tetrahydrocannabinolic acid, CBDA – cannabidiolic acid, and CBCA – cannabichromenic acid. What is left of the CBGA converts to CBG through decarboxylation. This is why so little of the plant is made of CBG.

CBG has been cited already as an anti-cancer agent, and now adds antibiotic to its repertoire of uses.

Nextage Therapeutics has developed a system that allows cannabis molecules to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and reach the brain directly. The technology is based on research done at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology and means that many side effects can be avoided and doses can be lowered in the medical use of cannabis.

Raw marijuana doesn’t have THC, but this doesn’t mean that the the plant in it’s natural state isn’t healthy or worth trying.

A lot of amateur cannabis users don’t know the details about cooking with cannabis. They might think that adding raw marijuana leaves to their sweets and dishes might produce some sort of effect. While this isn’t at all true, raw marijuana does have some interesting health benefits.

Not that long ago, researchers began to notice the benefits of the other parts of the cannabis plant, removing their focus from THC and CBD. These compounds and terpenes are plentiful and vastly different, to a point where researchers don’t even know how many there are and what their effects are in full.

Consuming raw cannabis has been likened to eating leafy greens. While the plant in this state won’t get you high or produce any psychoactive effects, it might help in preventing diseases, providing vitamins, minerals and cannabinoids. It most likely will taste really bad.

For the THC in the cannabis plant to become effective — providing the high and the sensation of relaxation or creativity — the plant needs to go through decarboxylation. It’s the process many unfortunately skip before eating marijuana (edibles). Decarboxylation occurs when you apply heat to the plant, be that when smoking a joint or when preheating cannabis before adding it in to your edibles.

Many cannabis flowers are dried and cured before going to market, but live products are crafted using flower that is taken fresh off the plant. The flavor and aromatic notes are robust and more closely resemble that of the live cannabis plant than other concentrates. This may be why live resin products are in such high demand in all adult-use cannabis markets. Consumers don’t just dab live resin, they are also buying live vape cartridges. According to statistics from the BDSA Green Edge platform, live resin captures a 22% share of California’s vape market.

Headspace Technology

Research-focused terpene company Eybna Technologies noticed the market’s natural preference for live resin and sought to understand why these products were more desirable to the consumer. To do this, the terpene profile of a few cannabis plants were studied at three phases. The data was collected from the plant using the company’s proprietary Headspace technology which can provide insight into the chemical makeup of flowering plants. Headspace technology is a tool traditionally used in the fragrance industry to capture the makeup of plants at their aromatic peak. This is the first time the technology has been used for researching the cannabis plant.

All plants used in this study were grown in controlled conditions in a medical cannabis greenhouse. Researchers used Headspace tech to collect data from multiple top colas on the same plant to cut down the possibility for error. The study was focused on monitoring the patterns of terpene change throughout the cannabis life cycle in hopes of revealing the phytochemical difference between cured and live plant profiles.

The Headspace technology utilizes an adsorbent fiber located within a hollow glass dome to collect various volatile compounds from the live plant. Using this fiber, terpene content was collected at 3 stages: from fresh colas on the live plant, after they had been dried for one week, and again after being dried and cured.

The Results

As expected, the results offer insight into which terpenes degraded/evaporated and which preserved at various points of production from the farm to the dispensary shelf. Findings show that at the fresh, planted state, a cultivar has the highest expression of monoterpenes like Beta Myrcene, Alpha Pinene, Beta Pinene, and Limonene. After one week of drying and curing, each of these terpenes decreased significantly — Beta Myrcene content decreased by 55%. While monoterpenes were decreased during the curing process, sesquiterpenes like Alpha Humulene and Beta-Caryophyllene were increased. Sesquiterpenes almost doubled in their ratio from the total terpene content in data taken after the harvest processes were complete, with Alpha-Humulene increasing 100% and Germacrene increasing 154%.

A cannabis product may fail contaminant testing if it has unsafe levels of microbials, heavy metals or pesticides.

While cannabis has many beneficial properties for both medical and recreational users, it also comes with intrinsic dangers like mold and yeast.

Growing cannabis sometimes involves pesticides, and the water can be polluted.

Most states where cannabis is legal have enacted legislation that requires companies to pass tests before releasing their product on the market. This, in turn, created a problem for companies that must ensure their product is safe and compliant with all regulations.

Luckily, the demand for a pure cannabis spurred the development of decontamination technology.

Many people around the world are discovering the benefits of medicinal cannabis. With its growing integration into modern medical practices, technology is also evolving to deliver greater quality and service to consumers.

From senior citizens to young adults with chronic health conditions, medical marijuana is a diverse industry that requires flexible, personal, and responsive technology. The emerging trends reflect increased legalization. As procedures change, the way people use technology to get medical marijuana will change. Here are some of the trends you can expect to see in the coming years.

Artificial Intelligence

Chatbots on websites will become more common as they help customers get answers to common questions and connect with important resources. AI will also be able to help customers search for different products, make personalized recommendations and perform a variety of customer service tasks. AI learns how to interact with people through every conversation; the more people use it, the smarter it becomes. Initial AI bots may seem clunky and mechanical, but as they become more widespread, users will eventually barely notice a difference between assistance from an AI and human.

From a business standpoint, AI will also begin to be used to automate more operations. AI is capable of monitoring growth and synthesizing information at a rate no human could ever match; higher demand for medical marijuana will require faster production. AI reduces the margin of error to ensure the cannabis remains safe despite

DNA Sequencing

New DNA technology will create a more regulated cannabis industry, including medical marijuana products that contain not even trace amounts of THC or CBD. Growers will then be able to customize or strengthen the medicinal benefits to suit people’s needs and serve a greater audience. Extracting genes and creating new types will pave the way for unprecedented evolutionary growth and use of the plant. With the ability to deconstruct, extract, and modify, there may eventually be a new type of manufacturing that replicates the compounds of medical marijuana without actually requiring a plant.

With the lockdown restrictions easing, COVID-19 remains a very serious health threat worldwide. Dozens of coronavirus vaccines are in development across the world in combined global effort with high hopes to bring one to the market in record time to ease the global crisis.

One interesting candidate is cannabidiol or CBD. Recent research shows it may help fight COVID-19.

What the research says

According to a study conducted at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada, those with raised CBD levels could reduce the adverse effect of coronavirus on the human body by examining hundreds of cannabis strains. Cannabis Sativa strains are high in CBD, and scientists could develop this core cannabis component to develop preventative treatments such as mouthwash products for both clinical and home use.

The research was carried out by Drs. Olga and Igor Kovalchuk, professors at the University of Lethbridge’s Department of Biological Sciences, along with researchers from Pathway RX, under a research license from Health Canada at the University of Lethbridge, which continues to actively pursue partnerships to conduct clinical trials.

Results from the study show that that hemp extracts high in CBD could potentially act as a barrier against the protein that provides a gateway in certain tissues for COVID-19 to enter host cells by balancing levels of angiotensin-converting enzyme II (ACE2). The virus can enter the host cells via ACE2, and inflecting those levels in the lung, kidney, gastrointestinal tract, nasal mucosa, and testes would reduce the host's susceptibility to COVID-19 significantly.

Love strain-specific edibles but have a hard time finding them? You are not alone! As people learn more about the variety present in cannabis’ many strains, many find that only some of these options give them the effects they are looking for. For those strain-sensitive patients who prefer edibles, this can present a challenge. It’s not always easy to find the strains you need locally, but it can be almost impossible to find them in edibles. Since most edible companies leave the strain a mystery (or mix many strains together) it is hard to find specific strains when you need them.

Making edibles at home is a great way to bypass the problem but edible recipes can get complicated. Most people don’t want to labor over a pot for hours, constantly checking that the temperature is still in the perfect zone. If you have had a hard time making edibles at home, here are five shortcuts simplify this tasty task:

Use a Magical Butter Machine

Edible bases can be tricky to make, and usually involve a long infusing process where the temperature needs to be just right. The Magical Butter machine really simplifies this process. You put your decarboxylated marijuana and your butter into the machine and push a button. Two hours later, your perfectly infused butter is ready to go. Since it can help make many common bases like butter, oil, glycerin, honey, and alcohol, the Magical Butter machine can simplify almost any edible recipe.

Cook the Weed Right In

Infused oils aren’t the only way to make an edible. If you want to skip the process of making a base and get right to making your edibles, try these recipes that use the flower itself. Do you ever vape your favorite strains? This delicious pesto recipe turns the left over flower in your vape into a culinary experience. Or try turning your cannabis into canna-flour, with this zucchini bread recipe. The recipe teaches you how to grind up your preferred pot into a powdered form that can be baked right into your favorite treats.

Eat it Fresh

You can skip the cooking altogether by eating raw cannabis fan leaf. This not only simplifies your process, but you can also gain the benefits of the plant’s unaltered natural compounds like THCA. The most popular method for consuming the raw plant is juicing it. The juice can be mixed with other fruit or veggie juices for flavor and can be frozen in ice trays to preserve for later. Still, some skip the juicing all together and put the leaf straight into their salad. The high is fairly different from infused and decarboxylated edibles so you might also find that different strains work well for you fresh than when consumed other ways.

Buying CBD products can be confusing to say the least. One thing that often perplexes CBD consumers is the difference between broad spectrum and full spectrum CBD.

With thousands of CBD products on the market, different brands are struggling to stand out. One major difference between CBD oil tinctures is whether they contain broad spectrum or full-spectrum CBD. It doesn’t help that products are also frequently mislabeled, too.

In brief, the hemp plants has hundreds of natural chemicals in it, including the “cannabinoids” that cause its beneficial effects. The most well known cannabinoids are CBD, the popular supplement, and THC, which is the main “active” ingredient in psychoactive cannabis (a.k.a. “marijuana”). But many other cannabinoids exist.

Both broad spectrum and full spectrum CBD products contain a variety of these natural cannabinoids, but differ in one key ingredient. While neither type of CBD will make you “feel high,” full spectrum CBD has tiny amounts of THC in it while broad spectrum doesn’t have any at all.

But there’s a lot more to learn, so read on to understand more about the different types of CBD oil and why it could matter to you.

To some, artificial intelligence (AI) may be categorized next to the likes of Bitcoin and blockchain: it’s just another techie buzz word.

For others, artificial intelligence could conjure up images of sentient robots hellbent on world domination.

While artificial intelligence, in some ways, can be those things, what it is in practice often looks much different.

The artificial intelligence that many people talk about today can also be referred to as machine learning, or the process by which software takes in data, learns patterns, and makes whatever adjustments it needs to make to achieve its goal.

The goal in our case?

October usually heralds the harvest of outdoor cannabis plants, affectionately known as “Croptober.” But this fall, something more serious is in the air: smoke from the wildfires that are ravaging California and Oregon.

Fires are clustered in Northern California’s “Emerald Triangle” and a pair of Oregon counties, areas that are among the nation’s most important for cannabis production. Even if crops aren’t destroyed in the more than 5 million acres of wildfires, massive amounts of smoke and ash will take a toll. Darkened skies can stunt the plants’ growth, said Jill Ellsworth, chief executive officer of Denver-based Willow Industries, which cleans marijuana flower for mold in California and other states.

“We’re hearing that some cultivators are starting to harvest early, because it’s prematurely flowering, and they don’t want that,” Ellsworth said.

In a normal year, around two per cent to five per cent of California’s marijuana crops would fail mold tests, Ellsworth said. This year, she estimates it could be double that percentage as sunlight-blocking smoke weakens plants’ resistance to mold, disease and other pests. Even crops inside greenhouses could be affected.

The impact is expected to extend beyond the flames and haze. The fires will likely hit supplies and cause ripple effects across the country.

Today’s cannabis market is experiencing unprecedented growth.

At the same time, consumers expect a consistent product while also demanding diversity.

Technological advancements in breeding programs are helping cannabis producers meet both of these needs.

By engineering and cultivating a base product that is perfectly aligned with specific goals, producers can now satisfy unique objectives of cannabis organizations throughout the industry.

Innovative new techniques in artificial selection, genetics optimization, and data analytics are making it possible for producers to strike a balance between diversity and consistency.

Some people report a dramatic change after just one serving of raw cannabis juice, while others may take four to eight weeks to see full results. 

Cold-press juices enable one to partake of the nutrients present in raw fruits, vegetables, and herbs that get lost once the products are heated or cooked. In a similar vein, consuming raw cannabis leaves and buds as a dietary aid increases the anti-oxidant and neuroprotective properties of this plant.

Raw cannabis can contain 500mg to 1,000 mg of non-psychoactive THCA, CBDA, and CBGA. In comparison, the same amount of cannabis once heated contains 10 mg THC. Also, as the THC in cannabis only becomes psychoactive when heated, consuming raw cannabis allows one to get the benefits of the plant in a non-intoxicating way.  

In particular, raw cannabis appears to be particularly beneficial in treating inflammation and autoimmune disease. As reported by Project CBD, “Unheated CBDA and unheated THCA (THC-acid) both have medicinal attributes, but there has been comparatively little scientific research into cannabinoid acids.” Hence, while the anecdotal accounts about cannabis’s benefits as a dietary supplement look very promising, further scientific research is needed. 

As with any other cannabis product, results vary according to an individual’s unique endocannabinoid system. Some people report a dramatic change after just one serving of raw cannabis juice, while others may take four to eight weeks to see full results.