ISO 9000 defines Quality Assurance as “part of quality management focused on providing confidence that quality requirements will be fulfilled”.
Quality Assurance has become a necessity for compliance in all cultivation, processing, extraction and retail dispensing operations. The QA position on a team has become valuable and lucrative. How do you assure that the quality of every last gram that enters or leaves your facility is top-notch? How do you ensure standards of purity while simultaneously driving down your cost of goods sold? How do you assure that your company is always operating within the legal confines set forth by the regulatory body in your jurisdiction? Have you ever had QA issues in the past? How did you handle those problems? Do you have a member of your staff who is responsible for QA? Tell us a little about that individual. @memberdirectory , let’s chat quality assurance.
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That’s a great topic. Medicinal marijuana should be regarded as any other pharmaceuticals. Quality control and chemical and microbial testing is very important in assuring the safety of products. Also, it is the best tool to achieve consistent chemical profile from batch to batch. This consistency allows consumers to predict the effects and formulate what works for them.
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Hi Growers Network,
Can you please add my business Partner Jake McDonald to the Grower Network?
His email is jake@cangenx.com.
Thanks
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This is such a crucial issue. It’s a main distinction that was supposed to occur with legal, regulated markets.
Lately I’ve run into the issue of efficacy and dosage with CBD products. Sometimes they worked surprisingly well, other times there was nothing going on, and I"m spending money to figure this out.
I would also love to hear what companies are doing for QA.
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ISO 9000 is about process and procedure. Every step, of the process needs a procedure, and everyone who preforms the procedure, must be trained in doing that procedure, and there is a procedure to train the person who is doing it etc… It does not mean you will have a quality product. Many years ago, the head of QC for Motorola said, 'It does not mean the life preservers will float. But they will all sink at the same rate!
What everyone needs is proven repeatable processes that work for them. And then do it over and over. When you have an ISO 9000, the word ‘feel’ is not part of a process.
David
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Should we be treating the adult-use cannabis with the same rigorous standards of quality as we apply to medical cannabis? What are your thoughts?
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I believe so. When it comes to quality, both categories must meet the same standards ensuring the safety and consistency of products. I think the separation of the two markets in Canada in two categories of recreational and medicinal is a great idea, as it aims at providing better prices and accessibility to medicinal market. But both categories must meet same quality standards, which is a great policy. Some of the limits should be re-evaluate for example for pesticides specification for indoor and outdoor growers. Other than that, I think it is critical that we aim for the best quality standards for the both markets.
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Absolutely! It’s the only way to have a high standard of purity with every gram produced.
If you could make suggestions to your local regulatory body to update the pesticides recommendations, what suggestions would you offer?
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I know that AHP is working on a new version of Cannabis Inflorescence Quality Control Monograph. They are consulting many experts and evaluating the historical data to better define the pesticides and microbial limits on cannabis and hopefully the new version will be adapted by regulatory bodies.
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