CBD product labels are one of the fastest-evolving kinds of product packaging, with new rules and regulations continuously changing the best practices facing brands, and a general lack of standardization existing between states. The Food and Drug Administration has released statements supporting the further exploration of CBD product approvals, but while that process is ongoing, producers and distributors have to pay close attention to the patchwork rules that exist today.

The use of effective technology such as QR code labels may represent a way for companies to stay in compliance as the laws change around them. In more than one state, the legality of CBD labels is tied to QR codes which, when scanned by consumers' smart devices, can provide a wealth of updated ingredient and supply chain information. The following are two examples of states that have taken this approach.

CBD Product Labeling Example: Indiana

When Indiana legalized the sale of CBD products in 2018, the state legislature included ingredient disclosure requirements in the bill, news station WTHR reported. To ensure they are not producing goods with illegally high levels of THC, CBD manufacturers in the Hoosier State have to add QR codes that link consumers with online lab results from when the particular product was tested. In addition to testing for levels of CBD and THC, the state labs verify that oils and other products do not contain dangerous amounts of heavy metals or pesticides. The maximum level of THC in an approved Indiana CBD product is 0.3%.

CBD Product Labeling Example: New York

Approximately a year after the Indiana legalization, in June 2019, New York passed a similar bill that mandates the use of QR codes that allow consumers to see lab results for CBD products. The law is designed to bring the CBD market in New York onto firmer legal ground than it previously occupied, with more clarity about how to manufacture, label and market CBD goods. The stated hope of lawmakers is that farmers will be able to invest more confidently in their operations, with a clarified framework for using their crops.

Lightning Labels' Role as a Third-Party Partner

CBD brands that need to create custom labels to suit ever-changing regulations should have assistance from partner organizations that can deliver short print runs. These prevent the waste that comes from large stock of unusable labels following a legal change. Lightning Labels employs digital printing processes which enable flexible order sizes and quick turnaround times. Furthermore, Lightning Labels has lengthy experience working with all corners of the cannabis market, from the first medical products to the high-growth recreational and CBD verticals, and can provide knowledgeable service for producers.

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