HOW CBD IS EXTRACTED

The CBD found in gummies, oils and balms has first gone through an extraction process. There are many ways to extract cannabinoids from plant material but these are the two most common ways to do it.

The carbon dioxide extraction method

Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a versatile gas with a variety of commercial uses, including extracting compounds from plant matter. Using a pressurised chamber, called a closedloop extractor, CO2 gas is compressed until it becomes a liquid. The liquid is forced over the cannabis material where it strips away cannabinoids such as CBD.

The entire solution is brought back to temperatures and pressures at which the CO2 reverts to gas and evaporates, leaving behind the CBD extracted from the cannabis plant material.

The solvent extraction method

This method also uses a closed-loop system and a solvent. A liquid such as butane, propane or ethanol washes over the cannabis, releasing the CBD and other cannabinoids.

The solvent must then be carefully heated or cooled to separate it from the extracted compounds without damaging them.

“The major drawback with this method is it destroys the plant waxes which have health benefits that are favoured by some product makers,” says Dr Harry Chiririwa, academic manager at the Cheeba Cannabis Academy and head chemist at CBD Full Spectrum, a licensed cannabis farm in Gauteng.

It’s important to note that both extraction methods use highly combustible chemicals and can be dangerous. Only trained professionals in properly equipped labs should attempt any kind of chemical extraction.