FDA Selects New Mobile HPLC System for Cannabis Analysis

Last week, Orange Photonics announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has selected the company’s LightLab 3 High Sensitivity Cannabis Analyzer as part a broader effort to help regulate and test the safety of food-related products that contain CBD and Delta-8. This follows the deployment of the LightLab 3 with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection last year.

"The public deserves to have complete confidence in the safety, labeling, and marketing standards of products on retail shelves,” Stephanie McArdle, president of Orange Photonics said in a statement (1). “State regulatory agencies have successfully relied upon the LightLab 3 Cannabis Analyzer technology for years. The FDA's adoption of LightLab 3 Cannabis Analyzer is a positive step as it continues to prioritize public health within the current regulatory landscape."

The agency frequently issues consumer safety notices and letters to companies who are marketing CBD and Delta-8 products that fail to comply with FDA regulations (2). The FDA has also sent numerous cease-and-desist letters to companies that market delta-8 THC edibles to children (3).

“Consumers should be aware of the risks and should speak with a medical provider about the use of any CBD product. We want people to make informed choices about their health,” Douglas Stearn, deputy center director for regulatory affairs at the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, and Kristi Muldoon-Jacobs, acting director of the Office of Food Additive Safety said in an interview on the FDA website (4).

Mobile testing can allow scientists to test cannabis on the spot, which decreases the burden on forensic laboratories, the company wrote in a press release. It also allows non-technical operators to test products where they are being made and sold.

References

1. Orange Photonics. LightLab 3 Cannabis Analyzer Chosen by FDA to Enhance Consumer Safety and Regulation in the Cannabis Industry. Cision US Inc 2023. https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lightlab-3-cannabis-analyzer-chosen-by-fda-to-enhance-consumer-safety-and-regulation-in-the-cannabis-industry-301904142.html (accessed 2023-08-21)
2. Colli, M. FDA, USP Advance Standardization, Regulation of Cannabis Nationally. Cannabis Science and Technology 2023. https://www.cannabissciencetech.com/view/fda-usp-advance-standardization-regulation-of-cannabis-nationally (accessed 2023-08-22)
3. McEvoy, E. New Law Regulates Sale of CBD Products in Washington State. Cannabis Science and Technology 2023. https://www.cannabissciencetech.com/view/new-law-regulates-sale-of-cbd-products-in-washington-state (accessed 2023-08-22)
4. Stearn, D.; Muldoon-Jacobs, K. What the FDA is Doing to Protect Consumers from Cannabidiol (CBD) in Foods. U.S.A. Food and Drug Administration 2023.https://www.fda.gov/food/conversations-experts-food-topics/what-fda-doing-protect-consumers-cannabidiol-cbd-foods (accessed 2023-08-22)