How is CBD Oil Made from Hemp?
CBD Oil: From Humble Hemp to Invigorating Supplement
As wellness-seekers and researchers alike explore the health-supporting potential of CBD hemp extract, it’s only natural for questions to arise. As your CBD hemp extract experts, we’re here to answer your questions so you can feel confident about how to use this remarkable oil!
Today, we explore how CBD oil is extracted from hemp plants and how it can be made into non-psychoactive hemp-derived CBD oil products. Let’s start by understanding what hemp is and what it isn't.
Are Hemp and Marijuana the Same Plants?
While both are cannabis plants, there is a crucial distinction between the hemp plant used to make CBD oil products and the common marijuana plant.1CBD oil is extracted from industrial hemp, a federally-legalized crop used to make products ranging from cooking oil to protein powder, shoes, rope, and textiles.2
What distinguishes industrial hemp is its very low or undetectable levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive compound. Thus, to be classified as hemp, a plant must contain 0.3% or less THC by dry weight.
This non-psychoactive industrial hemp is used to extract CBD oil for wellness products.
What Part of the Hemp Plant is Used to Make CBD Hemp Extract?
After harvest, CBD oil can be extracted from various parts of the hemp plant, depending on the manufacturer and the product's end goal. Full spectrum CBD hemp oil is extracted from the whole hemp plant and includes naturally occurring components like terpenes, fatty acids, antioxidant flavonoids, and cannabinoids, all working synergistically to support well-being.
Other CBD hemp extract products may only use parts of the plant, which are separated mechanically by their components (flowers, leaves, stalks, and seeds) before extraction.
How is CBD Oil Extracted from Hemp?
The extraction can utilize either the whole hemp plant or its parts, which may be raw or gently heated prior to extraction. This heating process, known as decarboxylation, enhances the bioavailability of cannabinoids within the hemp plant.4
Whether raw or heated, CBD oil is extracted using a solvent like ethanol or supercritical carbon dioxide to separate the beneficial compounds from the rest of the plant matter.
The resulting extract can then be used in various products. Liquid hemp-derived CBD oil is made by combining CBD hemp extract with a carrier oil, such as extra virgin olive oil or liquid coconut oil, which adds essential fatty acids and serves as a delivery system. It is also used to make hemp-derived CBD gummies, CBD snacks, and hemp-derived CBD capsules.
How is CBD Isolate Made?
CBD hemp extract can also be further refined using vaporization or chromatography to isolate CBD molecules from other plant components like terpenes, fatty acids, and antioxidant flavonoids.5
This isolated CBD can then be made into highly concentrated products, sometimes combined with specific terpenes also isolated from the hemp plant. Using CBD isolates may cause you to miss out on the synergistic benefits of the full plant’s compounds.
Quality Testing for CBD Hemp Extract
One of the final yet most crucial steps in the CBD hemp extract process is quality testing. CBD hemp extract products should be batch tested by both the manufacturer and an independent third party to ensure purity and potency, and to verify compliance with regulations.
At BubbForest Health, every CBD hemp extract product we offer is 100% quality tested and has undergone a thorough review by our science and regulatory teams for compliance before being available for purchase on our website or catalog.
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*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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