By Firelands Scientific
Every medical cannabis product sold within the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program (OMMCP) comes with a Compliance Label. This label is usually affixed to the back or bottom of the product packaging, and includes important information about the overall product category, as well as information regarding the specific unit purchased by a patient at a retail dispensary.
This label and its contents are a requirement for cannabis cultivators and processors defined by OMMCP regulators (the Department of Commerce and the Board of Pharmacy), but beyond this state mandate, can also share relevant items that are helpful for patients.
Firelands Scientific, in collaboration with Ohio Marijuana Card, has outlined 14 important items that are included in compliance labeling and provided relevant context around them, so patients can better understand what’s in their medical cannabis products, how they’re made, and how they should be consumed.
Note: This label is a mockup of a Solventless Concentrate Live Rosin product, and not representative of any legitimate medical cannabis product in the state of Ohio.
Each number corresponds to the arrows in the above image.
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1) Licensee Number
This number represents the license holder that manufactured the product. Every cannabis cultivator, processor, and dispensary in the state of Ohio is assigned an MMCP license holder number. As noted in the above image, Firelands Scientific’s processing license holder number is MMCPP00067.
For cannabis operations that are vertically integrated—meaning: they have cultivation and/or processing and dispensary businesses—a separate OMMCP license holder number is assigned to each of those operations.
2) Product Name
The Board of Pharmacy has set specific naming standards for each medical cannabis product, which is outlined in the chart below. When creating the name of an item, each cultivator and process must use the following template:
[Form and Method] – Target THC Content(mg) per dose] – Target CBD Content(mg) per dose] – [# of doses]
This Product Name is Oil or Sol Vap-59-0.2-10. This means it is a Metered Oil or Solid Oil for Vaporization, and that we are targeting for 59 milligrams of THC per dose, 2 milligrams of CBD per dose, and 10 total doses in the packaged unit.
Once the plant is ready for manufacture or packaging, it is then batched and assigned a Product ID and Batch Number (see #3).
3) Product ID
Prior to being sold, every medical cannabis product must be approved by the Board of Pharmacy and assigned a unique Product ID. This medical cannabis product’s Product ID is M00000054321. This further designates the Oil or Solid for Vaporization into a specific product category (i.e. a Vape Cartridge, or in this case, Live Rosin).
The Product ID in the image above denotes in the system that this is a Solventless Concentrate (Live Rosin) made from the cultivar Snowball S1.
4) Batch Number
This medical cannabis product’s batch number is “Snowball S1 Rosin #1234.” This number designates the specific “lot,” or batch of products formulated or packaged, within a given period.
As you can see, we are able to discover quite a bit about every cannabis product using the Licensee Number, Product Name, Product ID and Batch Number.
In Firelands Scientific’s case, we are even able to determine which plants went into the finished good, because we cultivate all the cannabis plants that are used for our manufactured medical cannabis products in our greenhouse.
5) Date of Manufacture / Date of Harvest
This is the date the medical cannabis product was made by the licensee. In manufactured products, this will be the “Date of Manufacture.” In the case of Cannabis Flower, this item will be noted as the “Date of Harvest.” This product's Date of Manufacture is 01/10/20.
6) Test Date
This is the date the cannabis product was tested by a third-party laboratory. This product’s Testing Date is 01/13/20. Every product sold via the Ohio program must be tested by an external, third-party laboratory licensed by OMMCP regulators before it is permitted to be sold to a retail dispensary. Third-party laboratories test for potency and overall product safety to ensure that medical cannabis products meet the requirements set by the State of Ohio for patient consumption.
Some licensees have their own laboratories on-site where they test and analyze product. For example, Firelands Scientific is equipped with its own R&D lab where we have the ability to test medical cannabis products prior to sending to a third-party lab. This in-house lab, however, does not replace the need for third-party testing.
7) Package Date
This is the date the medical cannabis product was packaged by the licensee. This Solventless Concentrate product’s Package Date is 12/20/2019.
8) Testing Lab
This identifies the OMMCP-approved third-party lab that tested the medical cannabis product. This product was tested by North Coast Testing Lab, whose licensee number is MMCPL00010.
9) Total THC and Total CBD
Both THC and CBD are required to be tested and labeled on every medical cannabis product per OMMCP regulations.
Total THC includes the combined amount of THCA (the inactive form of THC) and THC (the active compound) of that particular product. Total CBD includes CBDA (the inactive form of CBD) and CBD (the active compound). More on these forms of THC and CBD below. (See #10.)
The Total THC content is calculated by multiplying the THCA content by .877, and then adding the THC content.
The Total THC of this product is 590 milligrams. The Total CBD of this product is 2 milligrams.
10) THCA, THC, CBDA and CBD
THCA (tetrahydrocannabinolic acid) and CBDA (cannabidiolic acid) are the “precursor” compounds of THC and CBD. We’re still learning more about the potential medical benefits of THCA and CBDA on their own, just as we’re learning more about the benefits of THC and CBD.
Once THCA and CBDA are heated, or decarboxylated, they convert to THC and CBD, their “active” forms. So, for example, if you vaporize Solventless Concentrates, Cannabis Oil or Cannabis Flower that contains THCA, that THCA will convert to THC as its heated.
The THCA contained in this product is 661milligrams, and THC contained in this product is 10 milligrams. The CBDA contained in this product is 2 milligrams. The CBD in this product is 0 milligrams.
11) Expiration Date
This is the date the medical cannabis product will expire, meaning it will no longer be compliant for sale or consumption. In the state of Ohio, all cannabis products (both cannabis flower and manufactured products) have an expiration date of 364 days after the Date of Manufacture or Date of Harvest.
12) Extraction Method
The Extraction Method is the process by which the cannabis oil is removed from the plant material. The phytochemical (or plant chemistry) properties of cannabis can pulled from the plant using different methods and/or solvents.
This Live Rosin product was made via Solventless Extraction.
In Solventless Extraction, cannabis concentrates are made without any chemical solvents. The plant’s trichomes—which are the resinous glands of cannabis that contain most of the plants phytochemical content—are separated from plant stalks using filters. That material is frozen, washed, and pressed into Live Rosin and other concentrates using hand-crafted techniques.
13) Total Weight
The Total Weight of the product is the weight of the cannabis product itself.
In this case, the total weight of the Live Rosin is 1 gram. The weight of a Solventless Concentrate product will inevitably vary, depending on the cultivar that was used for extraction, as well as its potency.
(Note: Solventless Concentrate and Cannabis Oil products are filled by weight, not by volume, which is why the appearance of the oil may not look completely “full” in certain products.)
14) Admin Method
The Administration Method is the way the cannabis is to be consumed. For example, Mixed Berry Granola Squares are Edible cannabis forms for Oral Administration. Solventless Concentrates, like the product shown in this example, are meant for Vaporization.
To be compliant within the OMMCP, patients must consume cannabis products via the designated administration method.
With the above information, you should have the ability to confidently read a medical cannabis product Compliance Label and better understand your cannabis product. If you have any additional questions, please feel free to reach out to our team at Firelands Scientific by emailing CustomerService@FirelandsScientific.com. We would love to hear from you!
In case you missed it, we worked with Firelands Scientific not too along to provide an article addressing misconceptions within Ohio's medical marijuana program - be sure to check it out here!
To find the closest dispensary location to you, check out our Ohio Dispensary Locations page that has pages for each individual dispensary that highlights the contact information and pricing at the dispensary. Additionally, we also have Patient Resources available including Best Dispensary Prices, Dispensary Discounts & Deals, and Ohio Dispensary Menus.
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