Patients in Minnesota’s Medical Cannabis program can now officially purchase cannabis flower! We’ve talked before about what makes flower different from other delivery methods, as well as the advantages to buying cannabis from a legal dispensary versus on the illicit market.
One of the biggest advantages to buying from a legal dispensary is knowing what you’re getting. Every container of flower sold in Green Goods Minnesota is third-party lab tested and approved by the state before being sold to patients.
Facilities where cannabis is grown and manufactured for legal dispensaries are regulated to ensure that they are clean and safe. Finished cannabis products sold in legal dispensaries are tested for contaminants like mold and heavy metals and must meet acceptance criteria before being made available for purchase.
But beyond those regulations, cannabis flower from legal dispensaries is labelled; you can see the levels of different cannabinoids (like THC, CBD, and CBG, to name a few), and you can see which terpenes are present. The labels may also note if the package contains small bud flower.
In addition to providing detailed labels on all flower, Green Goods Minnesota proudly provides Certificates of Analysis (COAs) showing the third-party lab test results on all of our flower. These COAs show that every batch of our flower has passed rigorous third-party tests that include strict screening processes for contaminants like heavy metals and organic adulterants. Patients can access these COAs on our website by scanning the QR code on the label, or by visiting our website and entering the batch number from the label. Read on below for more information about reading our product labels and how to access product COAs.
How to Read a Flower Label
Every container of cannabis flower we sell has a detailed label – but like the nutrition labels on food, you’ll know more about the specific product if you know how to read the label!
Note: Labels may vary. While this image is representative of our labels, some package labels may have slight differences.
The top of each label lists basic information about the product: the strain, the size of the container, and the THC tier (high, mixed, or low THC).
On the left side of the label, you’ll see product identifiers (the Product ID and Lot Number) and the Batch Number. This information tells you exactly which harvested batch the product came from – and you’ll use it when you look up additional information on our website! This area of the label also tells you the exact percentage of total THC and of total CBD in that specific lot and batch!
On the right side of the label, you’ll find the harvest date and expiration date. The harvest date is the first date of harvest for that batch of flower; the expiration date is six months from the date the product was packaged (not harvested!).
This side of the label also has a QR code; you can scan this code with your phone to go to the product information page on our website.
Here you can enter the Batch Number of the product to see additional information about that strain, as well as the COA for that batch. The COA includes more detailed, technical information from the testing lab; it shows that we passed all necessary testing, as well as giving potency information for the cannabinoids and terpenes present.
If you want to become a patient in Minnesota, you can learn more about qualifying conditions and the certification process. If you’re already a patient, you can book a consult with one of our pharmacists to discuss flower and whether it might be a good addition to your regimen.And look out for more educational blogs about flower coming soon!
