Quality Management and LIMS in the Cannabis Industry

Understand everything you need to implement quality management with a LIMS system in the Cannabis industry. 

When it comes to Cannabis-based pharmaceuticals, having reliable, well-executed quality management in place in your laboratories is essential. 

And to ensure that, using a LIMS is absolutely essential. In this article, you’ll understand how this system supports regulatory compliance and traceability within the Cannabis industry.

The Cannabis Industry

Cannabis pharmaceutical production is one of today’s fastest-growing industries, generating approximately US$37 billion in 2021.

Since the first Cannabis-based medicine (Sativex) was approved worldwide in 1998, the use of the plant’s active compounds in medications has only grown, and today around 40 countries authorize the use of these compounds.

It’s fair to say that research into the effects of medications with Cannabis-derived active ingredients is proving increasingly promising, with these medications helping manage a range of conditions: chronic pain, epilepsy, anxiety, autism, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, cancer, among others.

With a consumer market increasingly legalized worldwide, the importance of this industry is undeniable, with ANVISA — Brazil’s health regulatory agency — having approved 15 medicinal products based on Cannabis so far.

This market’s expansion also calls for the industry to mature, since once legalized, Cannabis products and derivatives must meet high levels of regulation, ensuring the highest possible quality in what is sold.

Cannabis and Quality Management

Industries producing Cannabis-based pharmaceuticals need a robust, reliable management system in their laboratories, mainly due to the extraction stage, which demands high compound quality and purity.

Current regulations in several countries require that all Cannabis products and derivatives be tracked throughout the supply chain.

As a result, regulatory testing ensures the medication’s potency for consumer safety and guarantees that patients receive a legitimate product, while also keeping illicit products out of the market.

To ensure this regulatory compliance, Cannabis testing laboratories need a quality management system, since guaranteeing product quality requires verifying the integrity of the entire testing process.

Results must therefore be reported honestly, even when a sample fails to meet regulatory standards.

Cannabis Laboratories and LIMS

Given the high volume of data and information involved, Cannabis testing laboratories need robust workflows to remain compliant. 

Having a LIMS for quality management in Cannabis laboratories enables full transparency and traceability before, during and after the testing process.

A LIMS developed specifically for Cannabis use gives laboratory managers a complete, automated system needed to maintain compliance.

To ensure product quality, laboratories must provide evidence of a chain of custody from the moment a Cannabis sample enters the lab until the product receives its Certificate of Analysis.

As a result, since a Cannabis LIMS automates all workflows and reporting, the laboratory is not subject to human error.

From the moment the laboratory receives an order from a producer, QR barcodes are generated automatically, and this barcode then identifies the sample at every stage of the process with maximum precision.

Learn More: How a LIMS works

Conclusion

Throughout this article, we’ve seen that a LIMS offers the ability to automate the entire lifecycle of batches and samples in a Cannabis laboratory.

The system eliminates human error by enabling this automation, delivering documentation accuracy, and comes pre-configured with best-practice workflows, thereby adhering to Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) requirements.

This means that a Cannabis testing laboratory manager can be confident of passing every audit conducted by regulatory bodies.

Our Actiz system is deployed at one of the world’s largest Cannabis cultivation and extraction companies, which manufactures products under rigorous international pharmaceutical quality standards.

With Actiz, our client achieves greater efficiency, productivity, traceability and data integrity — a complete, reliable solution that is contributing to the production of Cannabidiol-based medications and, in turn, improving the lives of thousands of people around the world.

Schedule a meeting with us and discover how Actiz can transform your laboratory.