What is Dilution? What Does It Have to Do With CBD?
How Truly THC-Free CBD Oils Remove the Need for Dilution and Pave the Way for Innovation
In today’s CBD industry, most manufacturers of CBD oils and products start with a crude CBD oil which contains waxes, carbohydrates, lipids, terpenes, and cannabinoids including some amount of THC. This “crude oil,” which also contains high concentrations of the sought after CBD, comes from the extraction of industrial hemp. There are multiple ways to extract crude oil from hemp, including CO2 and solvent extraction. However, these two methods have some huge downfalls which result in major limitations of use in end products. The biggest downfall being that these extraction methods are not able to remove THC from the crude oil, meaning manufacturers must dilute their oil in order to comply with federal law in keeping the THC concentration below 0.3% by weight.
At Kazmira, we developed our own unique extraction process which results in a CBD oil that contains undetectable levels of THC. This removes the need for dilution, and allows for low volume, high CBD concentration end products. Lets dive a bit deeper into this dilution issue, and explore how Kazmira’s THC-Free CBD oils are paving the way for a tidal wave of innovation in the CBD industry.
Conventional Industrial Hemp Extraction Cannot Remove THC
The basic CO2 (carbon dioxide) and solvent extraction methods which are widespread in CBD manufacturing today have several downsides. Both of these processes are effective at extracting a variety compounds from hemp beyond cannabinoids, many of which are undesirable in CBD end products. The more these exist in the final oil, the more impure and low quality it is. Some manufacturers apply extremely cold temperatures and high pressures in order to circumvent these compounds from being extracted along with the desired cannabinoids and terpenes. Although this allows for only cannabinoids to be extracted, the efficiency is much lower, leaving behind a substantial amount of cannabinoids in the hemp along with the impurities.
After solvent extraction, it is critical that all of the solvent has evaporated from the crude oil. Left over solvent is very dangerous if consumed. In order to make sure it all evaporates, the extraction is often heated, or distilled. Distillation cannot remove THC, so the CBD/THC ratio in CBD oils remains unchanged from an initial extraction. Distillation can also degrade many of the volatile terpenes which give extracts their unique aromas and contribute to the entourage effect of broad spectrum extracts.
None of these methods are able to remove THC, which the federal government strictly regulates. These regulations mandate that CBD products cannot have THC levels higher than 0.3% by weight. Many distilled CBD oils have between 40-60% CBD and 2-4% THC by weight. This amount of THC in competitor’s CBD oils is substantial and could cause psychoactive effects. The THC concentration is above the legal limit, and therefore, the oil must be diluted with carrier oils such as MCT in order to be federally compliant.
The mass of THC in competitor’s CBD oils is substantial and could cause psychoactive effects.
What’s the Problem with Dilution?
The best way to illustrate this issue is with a hypothetical example. Say you have 1 gram of a CO2 extracted CBD oil which contains 0.5 grams of CBD and 0.03 grams of THC (this is equivalent to 50% CBD and 3% THC by weight). In order to reduce the THC weight percentage from 3% to 0.3%, the manufacturer must dilute the oil by a factor of 10. This can be accomplished by adding 9 grams of MCT oil to the 1 gram of CBD oil for example. The THC concentration is now at the mandated 0.3%, but the CBD concentration is also reduced by a factor of 10, from 50% to 5% per gram of diluted oil. The concentration in milligrams of CBD went from 500mg per gram of CBD oil to 50mg per gram of diluted oil. Also, the THC/CBD ratio cannot be changed by dilution. Even if competitor labels say “THC-Free”, there still may be up to 0.3% THC by weight.
The THC/CBD ratio cannot be changed by dilution. Even if competitor labels say “THC-Free”, there still may be up to 0.3% THC by weight.
Diluting the crude CBD oil in order to be compliant with federal THC regulations greatly reduces the amount of CBD per volume of product. This is the reason high potency CBD products in the thousands of milligrams are very uncommon in the market. If manufacturers use crude oil which contains THC, it is not possible to keep concentrations of CBD high while simultaneously keeping THC concentrations low, even if it is under the legal limit. Competitors may artificially enrich their diluted extract with CBD isolate, rather than purify the natural extract and its complements.
Competitors may artificially enrich their diluted extract with CBD isolate, rather than purify the natural extract and its complements.
THC Cannot Escape The Laws of Chemistry
According to the Law of Conservation of Mass, mass can never be created or destroyed. The same applies for THC in industrial hemp extraction. Manufacturers who dilute their hemp extract to lower the THC below 0.3% are simply hiding the full truth. The mass of THC is not being removed from its initial amount after the extraction step (2-4% THC). The mass of THC is unchanged, very high, and risky for consumers. This is why Kazmira’s proprietary purification technology focuses on removing and discarding the mass of THC in their extracts, rather than diluting it.
What if End Product Manufacturers Didn’t Have to Worry About THC in Crude Oil?
If CBD products were made with oils that didn’t contain any THC, manufacturers would not have to worry about diluting their products to be compliant with federal regulations. Therefore they could make low volume, high potency CBD products, opening the door to a new wave of innovation in the CBD industry. Kazmira’s THC-Free broad spectrum CBD oils have up to 90% CBD, other natural cannabinoids, terpenes, and non-detect levels of THC as confirmed by third-party certificates of analysis. These oils are moving the CBD end product conversation beyond the limitations of dilution and federal compliance. Truly THC-Free oil as a base ingredient can finally make the CBD industry about CBD, and CBD only. Moving the conversation beyond dilution will permit innovation on the end products side, allowing for high potency CBD products in all shapes and sizes, without any worry of THC consumption.
We can guarantee the removal of THC, not simply dilution. Rest easy knowing your final product from Kazmira is reliable.