Anresco Laboratories | EXCLUSIVE: We tested top California prerolls for potency inflation

September 9, 2022

A WeedWeek test of seven California preroll brands suggests potency inflation is close to ubiquitous in the product category.

Retailers consider potency and price the key differentiators that can move product. THC drives sales, which tilts retailers’ buying decisions towards the most potent flower and concentrates products. This in turn incentivizes brands to “shop” for labs that will give them the highest THC levels.

The practice of lab shopping is widely acknowledged in many legal states. In California’s brutal market, there are signs that it is rampant.

Executives at Infinite Chemical Analysis Labs and Anresco recently published summary data of material previously shared with state regulators. It found that of 150 samples at least 87% of California flower contained at least 10% less THC than stated on the label. Almost 30% came in more than 25% below the label.

A lab called CannaSafe recently cited lab shopping by brands as the reason for closing its only California facility.
“If you are an open and honest lab you are suffering severely in terms of your ability to generate revenue,” said Dan Poirier, CEO of Clip Labs, which helped with the tests described below.

To combat the practice, California’s Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) aims to standardize testing methods across the state — the proposal is now in a comment period — though critics say it won’t stop bad actors.

In response to a Public Records Act request, DCC declined to provide relevant documents, citing an ongoing investigation.

The WeedWeek Test

To better understand the problem of potency inflation, I bought several brands of pre-rolls and sent them to labs for testing.

The seven include some of the top selling brands in California: El Blunto (Albert Einstone’s), Field (Glass House), Jeeter (DreamFields), KingRoll (StateHouse), Lowell, Pacific Stone and Raw Garden.

Of the seven brands (and nine total products) included, all of them tested below the THC levels on their label. The implied potency inflation on various products ranged from 14% to more than 500%.

An Imperfect Experiment

The test suggests potency inflation is widespread in California. However, the results are not sufficient to apply to any individual brand, company, product or testing lab. The tests don’t account for many variables such as how long product had been on shelves, its temperature exposure, the potential for testers’ bias, human error and a host of other possible corruptions.

For the first round of tests, I provided two labs — Anresco and Infinite — with a single preroll from each brand.

Typically potency tests are conducted with a larger volume of product to account for outliers and ensure proper homogeneity in the testing sample.

After sharing the results, I invited the brands to do a second test with a larger sample size. The catch was they had to reimburse me at cost for the necessary amount of product, roughly $150. Two brands, Field and Jeeter, accepted the offer.

Anresco and Clip Labs did the second round of testing.
All three labs provided their services free.

via Flower Company

Field
Labelled THC %: 46% (COA)
COA lab: Bel Costa Labs
Anresco, THC %: 26%
Infinite, THC %: 30%
Implied THC inflation: 53%-77%
Company: Glass House
SKU: Lilac Sugar Live Resin / Diamond Infused 5-Pack Preroll
Listed price: $22
COA lab comment: “We reviewed the data from this sample and are confident in our results.” Myron Ronay, CEO, Bel Costa labs. See here for his full statement and here for a response from Anresco VP Zachary Eisenberg who stands by his results.
Brand Comment: No Comment

Jeeter
Labelled THC %: 46% (COA)
COA lab: Landau Labs
Anresco, THC %: 23%
Infinite, THC %: 27%
Implied THC inflation: 70%-100%
Company: DreamFields
SKU: Fire OG Diamond Infused 5-Pack Preroll
Listed price: $26
COA lab comment: “A review of provided CoAs shows moisture content analysis was handled differently from Landau Labs…thus final results were artificially lowered.” Georg Kellert, Landau Labs
See his full comment and this response from Anresco VP Zachary Eisenberg who stands by his results.
Brand Comment: No Comment

Raw Garden
Labelled THC%: 44% (COA 39% )
COA lab: SC Labs
Anresco, THC %: 31%
Infinite, THC %: 25%
Implied THC inflation: 48%-76%
Company: Central Coast Agriculture
SKU: Caribbean Slurm Diamond-Infused 3-Pack Preroll
Listed price: $14
COA lab comment: “Our concern is that flower is nonhomogenous and testing just one infused preroll across three labs, as was done in this case, does not meet the standards of a properly designed study that would be expected to yield reliable results. Case in point, a result of 25% for an infused preroll is on the extreme low end of the potency spectrum for a high-end product like the one tested. We would welcome the opportunity to participate in a larger, controlled study that employs proper representative samples and design criteria across multiple labs.”
Brand Comment: No comment

Jeeter
Labelled THC %: 37% (COA)
COA lab: Landau Labs
Anresco, THC %: 26%
CLIP Labs, THC %: 29%
Implied THC inflation: 28%-42%
Company: DreamFields
SKU: Churros Diamond Infused 5-Pack Preroll
Listed price: $26
COA lab comment: “A review of provided CoAs shows moisture content analysis was handled differently from Landau Labs…thus final results were artificially lowered.” Georg Kellert, Landau Labs
See his full comment and this response from Anresco VP Zachary Eisenberg. who stands by his results.
Brand Comment: No Comment

EXCLUSIVE: We tested top California prerolls for potency inflation

The WeedWeek Test

An Imperfect Experiment

Round One Results

ROUND TWO RESULTS

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