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Top 10 Secret Nature CBD Extraction Questions

Published July 02, 2020
Top 10 Secret Nature CBD Extraction Questions - Secret Nature

CBD extraction is complicated, so it’s only natural to want to know more about the process that transforms hemp flower into concentrated cannabidiol extract. At Secret Nature, we strongly recommend that you don’t try extracting CBD at home, but if you’ve ever been curious about where the extract in our tinctures or vape cartridges comes from, checking out the questions and answers in this list is a great place to start. Learn the details surrounding CBD extraction and find out why Secret Nature extract is better than the competition in the following list:

1. Why is CBD so expensive?

Over the last few years, the CBD industry has normalized to a significant degree, and as a result, prices for CBD products have dropped substantially. These days, we can offer our top-shelf CBD flower products for the same prices that you’d pay for recreational cannabis at a dispensary, and our vape cartridges and other products are offered at perfectly reasonable prices.

With that said, hemp and cannabis products remain more expensive in general than many other similar product types on the market, and the CBD flower and extracts we produce at Secret Nature are no different. This increased cost is partially due to intrinsic qualities of the Cannabis sativa plant. While this plant is so hardy that it can grow practically anywhere, it only reaches its full potential when it is pampered, which requires significant investment.

Additionally, the regulatory environment surrounding hemp and cannabis increases prices needlessly. Years of cannabis prohibition and misinformation surrounding hemp have made it unreasonably hard for producers to cultivate and market hemp products, but as the industry continues to normalize, hemp flower and hemp extract prices will continue to fall.

2. Where do I learn how to make CBD oil?

There are dozens of different ways to make CBD oil. The substance that results from simmering ground-up CBD nugs in coconut oil over the stove at home and high-purity, CO2-extracted, live-resin CBD extract are both commonly referred to as “CBD oil,” but these two types of extracts are polar opposites in terms of purity and the amount of professional equipment necessary to get the job done.

You can make rudimentary forms of CBD oil from home without exposing yourself to a significant danger. Trying to use butane to extract CBD oil in uncontrolled environments, however, could result in explosions or get you arrested for operating a drug lab, and extracting CBD with CO2 invariably requires high-end equipment and supplies. Instead of trying to make CBD oil on your own, we would generally recommend that you leave this tricky task to the pros.

3. Where do I learn how to extract CBD?

Extracting CBD from hemp or cannabis is a highly complex process that, in addition to requiring professional equipment, entails finding access to large quantities of bulk Cannabis sativa flower. If you choose to extract CBD from hemp, you’ll need to choose between low-quality, outdoor-grown buds, and high-quality, indoor-grown buds. While outdoor-grown hemp buds are cheap and easy to acquire, they’re more likely to be contaminated with toxins, and they have lower potency.

Indoor-grown hemp buds, on the other hand, are significantly more expensive, and it’s hard to find bulk sources of indoor-grown hemp. With either option, buying bulk quantities of hemp flower and having them shipped to your home for extraction purposes can raise the suspicions of local authorities, so it's best to stick to enjoying high-end hemp flower in consumer quantities while leaving it to professional labs to extract CBD oil from hemp.

4. Where do I learn how to extract CBD from hemp?

Hemp flower contains varying concentrations of CBD. Some indoor-grown hemp strains can contain in excess of 25% CBD, but most of the bulk hemp flower on the market is outdoor-grown, and it commonly contains less than 10% CBD.

Hemp flower that hasn’t been bred specifically to be high in CBD, however, commonly contains less than 5% of this non-intoxicating cannabinoid, and determining the potency differences between bulk hemp flower options can be difficult for consumers. In a worst-case scenario, you might end up getting your hands on hemp seed, which contains less than 1% CBD.

With all these factors in mind, it clearly isn’t worth it to try to extract CBD from hemp on your own. Leaving this task to professional producers is the best course of action unless you want to extract small amounts of CBD oil from Secret Nature hemp flower with methods that are safe to use at home.

5. Where do I learn how to extract CBD from weed?

In most cases, recreational or medical marijuana, colloquially known as “weed,” does not contain CBD in high concentrations. Instead, the dominant cannabinoid in marijuana is THC, which is a federally controlled, addictive substance that causes intoxication.

Even in states where THC has been “legalized” via recreational or medical marijuana laws, consumers are strictly limited in terms of how much high-THC Cannabis sativa they can legally possess. In Colorado, for instance, adults over 21 are only allowed to possess 1 ounce of high-THC marijuana at a time, which significantly curtails your ability to produce cannabis extracts at home.

Even if you find a reliable, affordable source of recreational or medical marijuana that contains high concentrations of CBD, any extract that you make with marijuana will have high concentrations of THC. It’s possible to separate CBD from THC with high-end lab equipment, but you cannot perform this delicate task at home. Instead of trying to extract CBD from weed, rely on professional CBD extracts produced by reliable hemp brands.

6. How many pounds of hemp does it take to make CBD oil?

That all depends on how much CBD oil you want to make. It’s possible to extract CBD from even one gram of CBD-rich flower, but you’ll barely extract enough oil for a single dab.

It’s easy to calculate the yield you’ll receive from extracting cannabinoids from CBD flower—all you need to know is the cannabinoid concentration that your flower contains. If you have an ounce of CBD nugs that contains 20% CBD, for instance, any extract you make with your flower will yield around 5.7 grams of oil.

7. What is nano CBD?

The term “nano CBD” usually refers to CBD oil that has been encapsulated within nanoparticles. These nanoparticles serve as carriers that deliver single molecules of CBD oil over extended periods. Some manufacturers claim that nano CBD is more bioavailable than normal CBD oil, but there is no scientific evidence that backs up this position. It’s also possible, but unproven, that the effects of nano CBD may be felt faster than those offered by conventional CBD.

8. How much is high-CBD hemp worth per pound?

The price of high-CBD hemp varies depending on a variety of factors. First, the CBD industry has not yet been fully regulated and normalized, so manufacturers are allowed to charge whatever they want for hemp. Some bad actors may overcharge for inferior hemp due to this lax regulatory environment.

Also, bulk quantities of CBD vary in price depending on their cannabinoid concentration. Hemp flower with 16% CBD, for instance, is sometimes sold for double the price of hemp flower with 8% CBD. Lastly, hemp that has been grown with sustainable and organic processes is generally worth more, and bulk prices for CBD-rich hemp may vary based on the physical appearance of the flower in question.

9. Where is CBD found in the plant?

In hemp cultivars that have been bred to be high in CBD, this cannabinoid is most concentrated in the mature flowers of female plants. CBD is also found in mature male plants but in much smaller quantities.

In addition to being present in the flowers of female plants, CBD is also found throughout the remainder of the constituent parts of hemp plants such as the stalks, leaves, and seeds. However, the concentrations of CBD in portions of the hemp plant other than mature female flower are usually below 1%. 

10. How old do you have to be to buy CBD oil?

Currently, there is no federally-mandated age threshold restricting the purchase of CBD. Certain municipalities and counties have imposed local laws prohibiting the purchase of CBD by minors, and in states where recreational marijuana has been legalized, CBD products that also contain THC can only be purchased at sanctioned dispensaries by adults over the age of 21. Despite the lack of regulatory oversight on this matter, Secret Nature has chosen to act proactively to fall in line with potential future regulations by restricting the purchase of our products to adults over the age of 18.

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