Lab Results and Product Quality Correlation

Do medical products have higher test values than non-medical?

This analysis joins lab results with inventory to compare the chemical profiles (e.g., THC, CBD) of medical and non-medical cannabis. Summary statistics and visualizations help reveal quality differences across categories.

The Bottom Line Up Front

Medical cannabis programs are designed with patients in mind — but Washington’s merged retail model means medical consumers often rely on the same products used for recreation.

This leads to important policy questions:

1. Are medically registered patients actually getting formulations tailored to therapeutic needs?
2. Or are they simply getting “recreational-first” products with medical tax treatment?

Patient-oriented products typically emphasize:

• balanced THC:CBD ratios

• acidic cannabinoids (e.g., THCA, CBDA)

• lower psychoactive intensity

But the data shows: high-THC products dominate both markets.

Overview
Cannabis quality isn’t just about brand reputation, strain hype, or shelf placement — it’s in the chemistry. Independent lab results provide one of the clearest signals of what consumers are actually buying…and ingesting.

So, we analyzed 7.27 million potency results submitted to the Washington State Cannabis Central Reporting System (CCRS), covering 2021–2025. Our goal: compare medical vs non-medical product profiles across major cannabinoids.

What we found may challenge some assumptions.

• Data Sources & Methodology:**
  • 7.27M submitted lab results
  • Post-processing to remove:
  • non-potency results (moisture, pesticides, etc.)
  • unreadable values like “<0.044”
• Normalized into 24 comparable potency metrics
• Grouped by CCRS inventory “Category” field:
  • Medical
  • Non-Medical

Analysis focuses on averages of verified potency values per product category.

Focused THC and CBD Test Analysis

Average Lab Test Values by Category

	CBD Compounds				THC Compounds				Total CBD		Total THC
Category	Avg CBD (%)	Avg CBD (mg/g)	Avg CBDA (%)	Avg CBDA (mg/g)	Avg D9THC (%)	Avg D9THCA (%)	Avg Δ9-THC (mg/g)	Avg Δ9-THCA (mg/g)	Avg Total CBD (%)	Avg Total CBD (mg/g)	Avg Total THC (%)	Avg Total THC (mg/g)
Medical	0.6	11.2	0.4	5.0	15.1	27.3	172.3	298.6	1.0	8.6	38.3	360.0
Non-Medical	0.7	14.8	0.1	1.8	19.3	26.5	218.2	337.2	0.7	9.1	42.5	430.6

Test Value Distribution

Distribution of Lab Test Potency Values by Category Table shows THC and CBD across both markets — Non-Medical products consistently skew higher in THC and lower in CBD-forward profiles.

Cannabinoid Category	Medical Avg	Non-Med Avg	What It Suggests
Total THC (%)	38.3%	42.5%	Adult-use products prioritize high-THC potency
Total CBD (mg/g)	8.6 mg/g	9.1 mg/g	CBD levels surprisingly comparable
Δ9-THC (mg/g)	172.3 mg/g	218.2 mg/g	Strong bias toward psychoactive Δ9-THC in retail
CBDA (%)	0.4%	0.1%	Medical SKUs more likely to preserve acidic cannabinoids
Δ9-THCA (%)	27.3%	26.5%	Slightly higher THCA in medical, but not by much

Overall: Adult-use products are stronger, but medical products show slightly better cannabinoid diversity. Medical products chemistry profiles are created with intention, targeting pain and depression, while recreational cannabis products shoot for high total THC content.

What Industry Should Consider

For Producers & Processors + Medical-labeled SKUs should offer distinct cannabinoid profiles + Opportunity for premium medical brands focused on formulations > potency

For Retailers + Patients may be underdosed on CBD, oversold on THC + Provide differentiated guidance for therapeutic use cases

For Policymakers & Regulators + Current model risks erasing medical-specific value + Reevaluating medical standards could improve patient outcomes