As per Health Canada regulations, a sample of every Bulk Lot must be sent to an external laboratory for testing and returned with a Certificate of Analysis (COA) before products from the Bulk Lot can be sold. Additionally, some licence holders test samples internally before processing to detect contaminants early to prevent wasted effort. The Lab Reports tab displays all lab reports, both internal and external, associated with a specific Bulk Lot.
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When a new sample is sent for testing, click New to Create a New Lab Report.
Lab Report Page
Select a lab report from the list to open the Lab Report. When a QA Technician creates a new lab report, they will fill out all fields in the Sample Details section. These fields describe the weight of the sample, as well as the sample's volume and quantity of discrete units if the Bulk Lot uses those units of measure. This section also indicates if and when the sample was sent for testing, whether or not the Bulk Lot has been sterilized, and the method by which the sample was delivered to the external laboratory. All other fields in the Lab Report should be left blank until the lab returns a Certificate of Analysis (COA).
Once the external laboratory returns a Certificate of Analysis (COA), a QA Technician must Update the Lab Report to reflect the data in the COA document. The Lab Report contains three sub-tabs for organizing the COA data: Cannabinoids, Terpene Profile, and Other.
Cannabinoids
The Cannabinoids sub-tab tracks the cannabinoid potencies present in the cannabis sample. Cannabinoids are the chemical compounds in cannabis that interact with receptors in the human body to produce psychoactive or medicinal effects.
Potency values are measured differently depending on the Bulk Lot's type and whether or not the Bulk Lot uses discrete units. Furthermore, some Bulk Lot types allow licence holders to toggle between two potency pages and select the potency unit of measure–or UoM–that best suits their needs. In these cases, you can fill out one or both pages.
Note: Given the regulatory transitional provisions, existing cannabis classes may use pre-amendment potency units of measurement (e.g. % for Dried non-discrete products instead of updating to mg/g) until October 17, 2020. We recommend migrating to the new units of measurement as soon as possible (e.g. when ordering new packaging and labelling materials) while transition time is available.
Consult the table below for a breakdown of potency units-of-measure by Bulk Lot type.
Bulk Lot Type | Discrete Units? | Potency UoM |
Dried | Discrete | mg/g (new) OR mg/unit (compliant until Oct. 17, 2020) |
Non-discrete | mg/g (new) OR %
(you must use the % fields to align with patient prescription potency limits) | |
Fresh | Discrete | mg/g OR % |
Non-discrete | mg/g OR % | |
Extracts - Ingested | Discrete | mg/unit |
Non-discrete | mg/g (new) OR mg/ml (compliant until Oct. 17, 2020) | |
Extracts - Inhaled | Discrete | mg/g |
Non-discrete | mg/g | |
Extracts - Other | Discrete | mg/unit |
Non-discrete | mg/g | |
Topicals | Discrete | mg/unit OR mg/g (based on results per unit) |
Non-discrete | mg/g | |
Edibles - Solids | Discrete | mg/unit |
Non-discrete | mg/g | |
Edibles - Non-Solids | Discrete | mg/unit |
Non-discrete | mg/g | |
Pure Intermediates | N/A | mg/g OR % |
If the Bulk Lot is not the Dried type, fields appear at the bottom of the Cannabinoids sub-tab to enter the Dried THC Total Equivalence and Dried CBD Total Equivalence. This is used to determine availability for patients with potency limits on their prescriptions.
Reporting Thresholds
The COA potency results may be compared against the reporting threshold, also known as the display threshold. The reporting threshold is a series of default potency values that will display on the product's label. If the actual potency of the sample is less than the reporting threshold, the label printed will place a “<” in front of the display threshold. For example, if the display threshold is 3mg and the actual potency is 2mg, the label will read “<3mg”.
Visit the Settings module to Customize the Default Reporting Thresholds.
Terpene Profile
The Terpene Profile sub-tab tracks the terpenes discovered in the cannabis sample. Terpenes are essential oils present in all plants which contribute to the plant's smell and taste. When a licence holder sends a Bulk Lot sample to an external laboratory for testing, the lab analyzes the sample's terpene profile, and this is included in the COA document.
The Terpene Profile sub-tab only displays terpenes saved to the licence holder's system. Click Manage Terpene List to Add a New Terpene.
Other
The Others sub-tab tracks miscellaneous data from the COA:
The sample's Fresh Marihuana Equivalency Factor. This only applies to Dried or Fresh Bulk Lots.
The sample's Density and Oil Equivalency Factor. This only applies to Extracts, Topicals, or Edibles Bulk Lots.
Any food allergens present in the sample.
Click Manage to Add a New Food Allergen.
The Bulk Lot's expiry date.
Once saved, the lab results will correlate with any products packaged from that Bulk Lot. This report data is compared against potency limits of a registered client’s prescription, which ensures the client can be easily matched with appropriate products.
For more information on other Bulk Lot Profile tabs, visit the articles on Harvests, QA, Retained Samples, Forensics, Totes, Weight Events, Work Orders, Mass Packaging Run, and Destruction.