Why is my cart dark?

What is Oxidation? 

When you look up the technical definition of Oxidation, you will find that when the term was first coined it was used to describe the reaction of oxygen combined with different elements. While I could really deep dive into the science behind what that means as a whole, the most important thing for you to grasp is that OXYGEN is the cause of OXIDATION. 

I honestly didn’t even know this was a thing, I am not very into chemistry, to be totally fair chemistry, physics, and mathematics are NOT my strong points, even today. Having worked with many different companies that produce cannabis cartridges, I have been privy to a lot of the complaints that they get. From faulty equipment, which is bound to happen from time to time, another issue that these companies are commonly faced with is the complaint that the oil is oxidized so therefore it is bad. It is safe to say that before I did my own research on the topic, I probably would have come to the same conclusion, however this is why I am so insistent on educating myself because I have now found just how wrong my assumption was. 

The rule of thumb in life is that goods expire, for the most part all goods have a shelf life, and cannabis is no exception. The process of oxidation happens when your cannabis oil is exposed to oxygen and sunlight, this causes the oil to darken and lose a MINISCULE amount of its potency. Every article I found explained that though it isn’t the prettiest, it is still safe for consumption. 

So let's break this down even more, I am a baller on a budget, that means I often run to the last chance or day old bread section of the dispo. There is a solid chance that if I get a cart off that shelf, it is going to have gone through some type of oxidation. This is not going to scare me off of buying it, especially now that I know it is just a normal part of the process. 

In order to learn more about how this problem affects different companies, I decided to reach out and ask. There was a resounding similarity in their answers, it was the fact that due to a lack of education, consumers assume that their cart is bad if they see any signs of oxidation. Due to the consumers assuming it is bad and complaining about the product, many companies are having to get rid of products that are still good due to a natural process that there is absolutely NO way to stop. This hurts business and it doesn’t have to. 

Carts that are oxidized are safe to smoke. I have not found a single source in my research that says don’t smoke a cart that has been exposed to oxygen. I will say that other factors that can play into the color of your oil changing is exposure to sun, improper storage of your carts, as well as a plethora of others. Now if your oil is black like molasses, I would say there is probably something else going on there, I mean… I wouldn’t smoke it. 

So the entire point of this blog is to normalize the fact that carts oxidize. It doesn’t mean that it is BAD. OXIDIZING is a naturally occurring process. What it actually scientifically does is during the oxidation process the THC/THCA molecules are turned into CBN in small amounts over time after exposure to sunlight and oxygen. How cool is that? CBN on its own helps treat a variety of different ailments and it is something that I myself use RELIGIOUSLY. 

Maybe I am rambling on but I heard someone recently LOSING their mind over the fact that their cart appeared slightly oxidized. They had purchased it two days prior and left it in the front seat of their car. The company replaced it for them and the dispensary handled it with such grace, but the volitialness of the customer was incredibly off-putting. Why are we abusing our budtenders over things they cannot control? It absolutely BLOWS MY MIND. Why are we out here talking bad about companies because we happened to get a cart that is slightly darker? I can tell you why…. It's because there is a massive lack of education in the cannabis world. To be fair, it is such a new market and industry, a lack of education by the consumer and employees is to be expected. 

The best thing we can do is arm as many people with knowledge as we can. For maybe then true change will come about. 

SO WHAT ARE OUR TAKEAWAYS: 

• STORE YOUR CARTS PROPERLY 

• OXIDATION IS NORMAL 

• DON’T ABUSE YOUR DISPENSARY STAFF 

• EDUCATE, EDUCATE, EDUCATE

Til next time,

THE STL STONER MOM