Challenges Facing the Standards Development Effort – Pain Points and Potential Solutions

The cannabis/hemp industry is a multifaceted beast, encompassing everything from building materials, clothing, and high-tech semiconductors to nutritional, dietary, and pharmaceutical goods. As this burgeoning industry emerges from the shadows of prohibition, clashes with the various aspects of the markets served by products manufactured from cannabis/hemp raw materials and their derivatives are inevitable. Consumer safety will be impacted by all aspects of this industry’s supply chain – from seed to sale – and standards will play a critical role in ensuring safety, efficiency, and quality of the various processes and products utilized from each market sector. 

To aid in the standards development effort, ASTM International's Committee D37 on Cannabis was formed in February of 2017, to provide the various factions of the global cannabis/hemp industry with the tools, infrastructure, and experienced staff they need to drive this process and facilitate the commingling of ideas from around the world. The D37 committee recognizes the need to work with the different factions of the cannabis/hemp industry and continues to solicit materially affected stakeholders, to help shape the content for these marketplace relevant standards.

This session will introduce the audience to ASTM International and the D37 Committee and discuss how standardization is a necessary step in the modernization of the cannabis/hemp industry especially in the area of test methods and laboratory practices. Participants will be given an overview of the D37 Committee structure, the current standards under development, and the challenges associated with them. The session will focus on the interdependence of specifications and test methods and how participants can take part in shaping the future of the cannabis/hemp industry through the standards development process.