Eurofins QTA Partners with State Police to use NIR to Test Hemp/Cannabis
Eurofins QTA is exploring new ways of bringing testing capabilities to the end-user.
Traditional testing of hemp or cannabis is completed in a lab using wet chemistry. However, Eurofins QTA brings testing to the product rather than getting the product to the testing.
Using an instrument from the QTA fleet, farmers and processors can utilize a NIR instrument themselves for rapid analysis of CBD, CBDA, THC, THCA, and moisture.
In 2020, Eurofins QTA took this one step further and started to work with a large police department in one of the United States' most populated areas to grow hemp and cannabis. Using models created by Eurofins chemists, the police department can use an instrument in their squad cars to immediately analyze confiscated materials. This enables the officer to know in 60 seconds if the material they have found falls within the THC range to be considered a narcotic.
QTA is also using this solution to help alleviate the strain on their own laboratory during harvest. Now they can go onsite to a hemp grower and test floral material, cut straight from the plant, and let the farmer know if they can go ahead with their harvest or if the material has gotten too hot.
NIR does not remove the need for traditional wet chemistry testing entirely. Data from conventional wet chemistry methods, such as GC or HPLC, are utilized in the development of chemometric algorithms which interpret the NIR spectra. However, the rapid testing solution can help a grower or an officer make quick, on-the-spot decisions that previously tied up their lab and legal system.
By: Janet Bosken - Eurofins Regional Sales Manager