Buying CBD [A Comprehensive Guide]
It's in the gas stations. It's in the grocery stores. The
drug stores. It has its own stores. It has countless websites. It's CBD, and
it's everywhere.
Of course, there's good reason for that: CBD is insanely
popular. According to one estimate, the CBD industry is set to more than double every year for the next two years. Other
estimates note that 1 in 3 American adults have tried CBD. These are
explosively high numbers that truly demonstrate CBD's incredible popularity.
This burst of popularity has led to some huge benefits for
CBD customers: There has been incredible innovation in the field, and the rise
of competition is also driving down prices. As a result, it seems as if every
day brings a new CBD product or method of consumption.
On the other hand, it is now way, way too easy for customers
to get ripped off by unscrupulous vendors who only care about their bottom
line, and not the well-being of their customers.
One horrifying 2017 study from the University of Pennsylvania perfectly
illuminates this. The study tested 84 CBD products and found that nearly 70% of
the products were inaccurately labeled.
Even more frightening is that consumer protections from the
United States Food & Drug Administration have failed to catch up to the
explosion of CBD growth, and unscrupulous vendors can still easily rip off
well-intended consumers.
That's not to say that every CBD vendor is dishonest.
Thankfully, most are good and want to make sure you get the right product.
However, as an informed consumer, you have to be on your guard. This guide will
show you how to properly buy CBD and protect yourself.
How To Buy CBD
Buying CBD shouldn't just be a matter of picking up the
first CBD product that you see with a pretty label and making a purchase.
Indeed, CBD is not a product you should just buy on a whim - you have to do
your research before buying it.
Why is this the case? Well, unlike most other food, drinks,
and supplements, CBD is not heavily regulated. As of October 1, 2020, the Food
& Drug Administration had still failed to issue stringent requirements on labeling
and inspections of CBD.
Some states had picked up the slack, but this is hit or
miss, to say the least. As a result, the market is still largely a
free-for-all, and the only thing the FDA is enforcing is that companies cannot
make medical claims about their product.
Another issue: Amazon. Amazon does not allow for CBD products to be sold on the website.
However, as the linked article notes, that doesn't mean that the company
perfectly enforces this ban.
A search on Amazon for CBD reveals
an array of products, but again, these products are misnomers. All of the
sponsored products are "Hemp Oil" or "Hemp Gummies." To be
clear: This is not the same thing as CBD.
What you have here are companies trying to take advantage of
consumer ignorance. Hemp Oil and CBD Oil are not the same product. Hemp oil is
likely cold-pressed hemp seeds, while CBD oil is extracted from hemp and
cannabis plants.
This is a great example of an unfortunate truth: Less
reputable sellers will do whatever they can to separate you from your money.
There is certainly nothing wrong with buying hemp oil -
indeed, it may have many nutritional benefits - but that's not the same thing
as CBD oil. Many other websites may make the same dishonest marketing
substitutions.
So, how can you buy CBD? Thankfully, there are real answers
to this question: You have to do your research and fully understand what you
are getting into.
- Only purchase from websites or stores that clearly list their ingredients and provide third-party verification for what you are attempting to purchase.
- Make sure that any online vendor you use has numerous reviews of both the product and the website itself, and make sure to search the internet for reviews of that website.
- Don't buy from any website that makes direct medical claims about CBD's effectiveness, as that is illegal and unsupported by science.
There is a big difference between a website that accurately
summarizes the positive research that has been conducted about CBD and one
which specifically makes dramatic and definitive claims, such as "CBD will
remove your pain" or "CBD can unquestionably reduce skin
redness!"
Where To Get CBD Near Me
CBD is available virtually everywhere these days. This
includes grocery stores, major drug store chains, virtually anywhere on the
internet, and many gas stations or rest stops.
However, just because you can get CBD anywhere
doesn't mean that you should get CBD anywhere. Keep in mind that there are
very few jurisdictions in the country that requires any sort of special license
or certification before CBD is actually sold. This presents a huge challenge
for a compound that can potentially cause harm if it interacts with certain medications.
Generally speaking, you can buy CBD from two categories of
stores: brick and mortar or you can buy CBD online. A brick and mortar store is
any physical location. However, there are multiple things you should keep in
mind.
CBD needs to be treated by all parties involved as a serious
compound, one that may be capable of helping you in many ways. However, given
its components and newness, you should only purchase from a CBD store that has
significant expertise to answer questions. This may include grocery stores,
drug stores, or specialty stores.
In many cases, specialty stores come with the added benefit
of having staff on-site that will be knowledgeable about CBD or able to answer
questions and make recommendations. Make sure to do your own research about any
potential CBD purchase that you make. Furthermore, understand that the
expertise these stores can provide may come at a higher price.
There are also countless websites from which you can purchase
various types of CBD. These websites are legal at the federal level and in
virtually every state, so there are no legal issues for you to worry about.
Purchasing off a website comes with many benefits, including
the ability to compare prices and conduct research about others' experience
with both the website and the CBD product you are considering purchasing.
What To Look For with CBD
If you are purchasing in person or online, there are a few
things you should be looking for. These include:
- Certificate of Analysis: This is a third-party test done by an outside company that confirms the veracity of the CBD's labeling. It will allow you, a potential customer, to inspect the CBD's ingredients and confirm what is actually in the product.
- Relevant expertise: Someone at the location - be it in person or a website - should be able to answer your questions. If no one has the relevant knowledge, or they don't respond to Emails, move on.
- Reviews: If you are purchasing online, you should be able to read customer reviews of a product. Take these with a grain of salt, as it is way, way too easy for a company to fake reviews. However, if they are honest, and some people actually express concerns with the product, you can probably take them more seriously.
- Transparency of manufacturing: Any CBD vendor should make it easy for you to learn where the CBD was manufactured, where their hemp was grown, and what methods went into the CBD processing. In all fairness, this information may be harder to gather with a brick and mortar store, but you should be able to find it with a little bit of research. Again, if you can't easily find it, that implies that the company has something to hide about how they process and manufacture their CBD, or isn't as dedicated to transparency as they should be.
- Customer Service: As noted above, CBD is a serious supplement, and it needs to be treated as such. Before purchasing from any store or website, conduct your own research and confirm that the place you are looking to purchase from is reputable, answers questions, and ships quickly. If there are any red flags, avoid that vendor.
- Competitive Pricing: CBD is often not cheap, and that's for good reason, as many steps go into making the product. However, thanks to the internet, you should be able to research if you can get the product cheaper elsewhere. Keep in mind that price isn't everything, and make sure to search for additional information on whether or not a CBD website has a good reputation.
- Variety of products: This isn't strictly necessary, but a company selling a variety of products is a good thing. It gives you additional options as a customer, and it implies that a company has a visible level of expertise in the CBD world. Look for companies that offer full spectrum CBD, broad spectrum CBD, and isolate CBD.
Is CBD Legal?
Yes. CBD is legal in the United States and in many places
throughout the world. Whether or not a product contains THC can potentially
impact its legality, but fear not: You should be able to purchase CBD from any
trustworthy CBD vendor and do so without any legal risk.
Prior to 2018, CBD existed in a mushy legal area. Many
states legalized the product - or at least allowed it to be sold without
prosecution - despite the fact that many CBD products contained THC. In the
eyes of the federal government, this made the product similar to
marijuana.
That changed with the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which removed CBD from the list of banned Schedule One drugs. As
such, CBD was essentially legalized at the federal level.
This was important for many reasons. Chief among them:
Individuals who purchased, processed, or manufactured CBD from hemp plants
could no longer be prosecuted for drug possession. However, from a business
perspective, this opened huge doors.
As a result of the 2018 Farm Bill, CBD businesses could have
access to critical business systems, including banking, financing, insurance,
marketing, and transportation - something that federal restrictions had
previously disallowed.
Of course, this did not mean that any CBD, anywhere, could
be legally sold. Many restrictions remained, chief among them being the impact
of THC on CBD. THC is short for tetrahydrocannabinol, and it is arguably the
most well-known cannabinoid in the world, as its presence in marijuana is
responsible for marijuana's intoxicating impacts.
The 2018 Farm Bill dictated that CBD could be manufactured -
however, it could contain no more than .3% THC. This level is far, far below
what is commonly found in marijuana, and thus not capable of getting anyone
"high." CBD found with more than this level of THC cannot be
sold.
States could establish their own plans for CBD and hemp
growth and processing. These plans had to be submitted to the United States Department of
Agriculture for formal approval and had to contain multiple safeguards against
the hemp potentially being used for marijuana.
Additionally, the United States Food & Drug
Administration - which is responsible for the regulation of food, drinks &
medicine in the United States - is still developing regulations for CBD.
Temporary regulations have been established, but these
largely deal with how CBD can be marketed. For example, the FDA has cited numerous companies for violating their restrictions
against marketing CBD as being able to make definitive medical claims.
It is also worth noting that different states have the
ability to establish their own CBD regulations, and many have done so. Some
states require company's that sell CBD to obtain licenses to do so, but most do
not.
Fortunately for consumers, there is only one state where the
sale of CBD is explicitly banned: Idaho, which does not allow for the sale of CBD products
with any amount of THC.
Keep in mind: While you can buy CBD with THC, that doesn't
mean it is completely risk-free. Though unlikely, it is possible to test positive on a drug test as a result of CBD use. It is
unlikely, but not impossible, depending on a variety of circumstances,
including your history with cannabis-products and the sensitivity of the drug
test in question.
Conclusion
There is no question that the purchase and sale of CBD require consumers to pay attention to trends and only purchase products that adhere to the strictest quality control standards. Sadly, as with any new industry, there are sellers out there that only want to make money. Thankfully, there is also good news: A wide array of vendors exist that want to sell you good, high-quality CBD. As an informed consumer, you have to make sure you are paying attention to the difference.