Is California's Potent Weed Losing Its Strength? Here's What's Behind The 7% THC Drop

Cannabis products in California have been widely known for their strong potency for years, but this seems to have changed over the past several months.

According to new information from a data analytics company Headset, the median THC potency for cannabis flower fell 7% over the last three months. Headset analyzed more than 90,000 samples from various pot shops to discover that the median THC potency fell from 30.7% in December to 28.5% in March, reported SFGATE. 

How did this happen? Is marijuana in the Golden State getting weaker? Some experts disagree, offering a different explanation.

California's weed products have been slammed many times over the last few years over inaccurate labeling. Some retailers and labs have been accused of falsely claiming higher THC content to raise prices. The higher THC levels, the easier to charge more. There have been several class-action lawsuits filed by consumers arguing they've been tricked by inaccurate potency labels.

For example, in December 2022, Dovel & Luner, a litigation boutique law firm, filed a class action lawsuit against Ironworks Collective Inc. and Stiiizy LLC on behalf of California consumers who purchased cannabis products with inaccurate THC content labels. The lawsuit alleged that defendants, who make, sell, and market "Stiiizy" brand cannabis products, overcharged consumers by illegally selling products whose THC content was represented as substantially higher than it was.

See Also: California Pre-Roll Cannabis Brand Faces Lawsuit For Mislabelled Amounts Of THC In Products

Stricter Testing Requirements

State regulators had to do something about this, so they tightened testing regulations. As of January 1st, all state-licensed laboratories are required to use the Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) for testing dried flower and non-infused pre-rolls. At the time only 13 labs out of 38 met the requirements to test marijuana flower, the most popular category of legal weed. 

According to Zach Eisenberg, a vice president at Anresco Laboratories, a San Francisco lab licensed to test cannabis, new testing requirements explain the drop in THC content. In other words – weed is not getting weaker, but it is getting much harder to cheat on THC potency tests and to inaccurately label products. 

"We certainly heard from customers and potential customers that they're seeing potency values dropping at other laboratories," Eisenberg told SFGATE. "Some labs were even proactively saying, ‘Be prepared for our results to be lower after this change.'"

Eisenberg expects this trend to continue.

See Also: Another Cannabis Company Sued For Having Less THC Than It Claims On The Product Labels

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Photo: Courtesy of r.classen via Shutterstock