The Complete Guide to Cannabis Pesticide Testing in New Jersey

Pesticides are commonly used to protect all kinds of crops, from the food we eat to agricultural crops used for industrial purposes. They protect crops from bugs, vermin, disease, and other problems that can ruin a crop. While certain pesticides are safe at very low levels, anything higher can potentially endanger consumers, particularly medically vulnerable consumers. Fortunately, pesticide testing is available (and required, in almost every case) for cannabis companies in New Jersey and other states that want to ensure their crop is top quality and free of harmful pesticides.

In this blog, you will learn:

  • Why it is important to test for pesticides

  • If pesticide use is legal in New Jersey and other states

  • How analytical laboratories test for pesticides

Why should you test for pesticides?

Aside from regulatory requirements that mandate pesticide testing, cannabis businesses should test products for pesticides for two other important reasons:

  • Consumer safety and trust. In high enough levels, pesticides can be harmful to animal and human life. To build brand trust and demonstrate product quality, cultivators should make their legally-required pesticide testing results available to their consumers.

  • Cannabis plants absorb pesticides more than other plants do. Pesticides are applied to plants in several ways, including in the soil and sprayed directly onto a plant. Even when pesticides are not used directly on the cannabis plants, they can be present in cannabis flower and other products in higher-than-normal levels. That’s because cannabis is a bioaccumulator that takes in soil contaminants, pesticides among them. 

What are the regulations around pesticides?

In most agriculture, the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for setting the baseline standards for which pesticides can be used and at what levels. However, cannabis remains federally prohibited and the EPA has hesitated to weigh in on the growing industry legalized at the state level. 

That's why cannabis cultivators are typically required to test for pesticides under individual state laws and regulations, which vary significantly from state to state. For example, Oregon regulates 59 pesticide compounds, while California regulates 66 of them.

What are New Jersey's requirements for pesticide use and testing?

Under New Jersey's cannabis regulations, the application of pesticides to cannabis cultivated in New Jersey is not legal, and testing of all medical marijuana products is mandated by law. While other states permit the use of certain pesticides under specified maximum residue limits, their use remains banned in New Jersey. 

Licensed cannabis cultivators and processors are legally required to demonstrate that there are no pesticides used on their products. Pesticide testing is critically important given New Jersey's strict approach to pesticides in cannabis – failure to provide clear evidence that no pesticides were used could find brands afoul of the law. In place of pesticides, cultivators rely on organic options to keep pests at bay, such as natural herbs and oils.

Since New Jersey voters passed an adult-use cannabis referendum in November 2020, the state has been working to set new rules and regulations for the emerging recreational market in the Garden State. The state has adopted interim testing guidelines used by Maryland’s medical cannabis program for its own products while the adult-use market takes shape. The Maryland Department of Agriculture has approved a specified list of pesticides for use on medical cannabis, and the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission requires pesticide testing for 48 pesticides, including the insecticide Aldicarb, the PGR Carbaryl, and the fungicide Trifloxystrobin.

The main takeaway: Licensed cannabis companies in New Jersey cannot use pesticides anywhere in their facility, at any cultivation stage or at any point during processing. Currently, cannabis must be tested for 48 pesticides. 

How True Labs for Cannabis conducts cannabis pesticide testing

True Labs for Cannabis uses scientifically validated and comprehensive testing methods to detect, identify and quantify a significant number of pesticides, as regulated by the State of New Jersey. The best testing methods available today, which are in use at True Labs, require high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography (GC) dual mass spectrometer (MS) detectors. These devices must first be programmed to identify the pesticides in question. The pesticides are then degraded and analyzed again to help chemists determine whether a particular pesticide is present in the product and in what amount. 

Although the above describes the general process by which cannabis is tested for pesticides, the methodologies are evolving as quickly as the legal cannabis industry. True Labs for Cannabis utilizes the most advanced technology, aligns with standardizing body methods, and continues to research advances in instrumentation and methods to provide the most forward-looking approaches to testing cannabis products.

Cannabis pesticide testing in New Jersey is about safety and compliance

Pesticide testing is a serious matter, especially in New Jersey where the state prohibits use of all pesticides in the cultivation of cannabis. Beyond legal considerations, though, consumer safety and trust in the quality of your cannabis products is of the utmost importance for their well-being and your business's success. It's not only important to provide pesticide testing results to the state, but also to your customers, who rely on your products to be clean and free of pesticides. True Labs for Cannabis offers meticulous pesticide testing to do just that. 

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