We live in a consumer-driven age where there are many different tiers available when it comes to buying a single product. We see it with sparkling water options, and vegetables at the grocery store, and we even see it with CBD Strains.
If you are wondering how high-end CBD strains are made, you have come to the right place. We’re going to break down the process of growing and manufacturing CBD, and explore what separates regular CBD strains from high-end CBD strains.
Before we jump into the process of how CBD is separated from THC, let us first review what CBD does and what it is good for.
CBD is short for “cannabinol”, which is the second most prevalent and active ingredient within the cannabis plant. The most active ingredient in the cannabis plant is THC, which stands for “tetrahydrocannabinol” and is primarily responsible for making people feel “high” when they use cannabis.
People claim to find CBD helpful with problems like alleviating anxiety, stress, trouble sleeping, and pain. In 2018 CBD became federally legal and was approved for use by the FDA.
Since its inauguration into the legal space, CBD has become all the rage, showing up in vapes, oils, extracts, capsules, edibles, patches, and topical salves.
If you are just now entering the world of CBD use, welcome.
This part of the process starts out relatively simple. There are two different types of marijuana plants: marijuana, and hemp.
Marijuana plants are rich in THC, and are known for their big hairy buds that lend themselves to recreational usage, and that fabled stoney feeling.
Hemp, however, is the less-potent version of the marijuana plant that contains less than .3% THC (a negligible amount) that will typically not lead the person using the CBD to feel any type of altered state.
All hemp plants are marijuana plants, but not all marijuana plants are hemp plants.
Whether CBD is extracted from marijuana plants or hemp plants, the molecular compound is the same. However, not all plants are raised and nurtured the same way, and therein lie the differences in quality.
People have known for thousands of years about the many uses of hemp, so it’s no surprise that hemp continues to be farmed to this day on an industrial scale and used for manufacturing things like paper, textiles, rope, bioplastics, insulation, an alternative to milk, and biofuel. Hemp is even edible and nutritious.
Hemp plants that are raised on a large industrial scale tend to be more sparse, skinny, and they grow less foliage. These industrial plants may also be grown using pesticides due to the large number of plants being grown all at once.
Conversely, high-end CBD comes from thick, lush marijuana foliage.
Imagine the non-organic produce section of the grocery store. Those are definitely vegetables, and most of the time they look alright. Sure, some bell peppers are suspiciously large, as if they were grown using GMOs, and the carrots are kind of skinny… but they are still vegetables.
Now, imagine the vibrant bell peppers at a farmer’s market, and the thick loose carrots that came directly out of the ground. They just look different than the non-organic carrots available at the store, right?
There is typically a cost difference between shopping at a grocery store and shopping at a farmer's market: the farmer's market is more expensive. But why?
It costs small-scale farmers more money to grow organic crops. That’s why unsuspecting shoppers at a farmer’s market can feel suddenly extorted when paying the upcharge for something that typically isn’t expensive en masse at a grocery store.
Paying a premium on high-end CBD products is similar to buying organic produce, you are paying for a nice product, as well as the peace of mind that it was farmed ethically and with care.
Molecularly, CBD is the same whether or not it comes from hemp or a marijuana plant. But, sub-par/low-cost CBD may contain contaminants like pesticides and sometimes the label of a sub-par cannabis product can be misleading.
If you are looking to be certain that the CBD product you are shopping for contains no amounts of THC, then you will be seeking CBD isolate products. These products come from strictly hemp plants ONLY.
Full spectrum CBD products use all of the marijuana plant, terpenes, trichomes, and THC. That is what the ratio means on product labels. However many parts CBD to however many parts THC. For example, if the label says 5:1, that means there are 5 parts CBD and 1 part THC.
A full-spectrum CBD dominant strain will often include that one pinch of THC because having all of the parts of the plant working together boosts the effectiveness of the CBD due to a thing called “The Ensemble Effect”.
Since 2018 there has been a maelstrom of CBD advocates who claim that using CBD has general wellness benefits.
Beloved CBD strains have evolved to be more refined and effective through selective breeding.
If you’ve never splurged on a high-end CBD strain before, it could be time for you to do some research for yourself.
