Puff N Ponder #11
Puff n Ponder
With Papa Jefe
Where's my quality assurance?
"No one would buy shoes they couldn't see."
-Uncle Kerri
There's a lot that can go wrong with cannabis. From a growers perspective to the consumers, there's a lot to look out for whether it be good or bad.
We know the basics: Bugs, rot and mould. Those are just the base horrors we can find easily. Then there's the unknown, or unseeable. Pesticides, poor curing practices, unwashed hands, plaster, plastic, human hair, human waste and so on. Who is to protect us from these blights? Quality Assurance and Health Canada.
What are the responsibilities of quality assurance?
Responsibilities
• Ensure that standards and safety regulations are observed.
• Address and discuss issues and proposed solutions with superiors.
• Document quality assurance activities and create audit reports.
• Make recommendations for improvement.
• Create training materials and operating manuals.
So there's a fine line of what's classified as acceptable in the world of cannabis. One of the major things that seems acceptable is mould as long as it's irradiated and unable to spread.
"Canadian cannabis producers routinely irradiated an estimated 80%-90% of their product." - David Hodes MJBizdaily
Yet consumers are looking for companies that don't do this for a sign of freshness, trust and fear. Yet there's still cases almost weekly of people finding unacceptable cannabis still hitting the shelves.
What happens when a customer finds mould? They contact the place they bought it, the shop they bought it from can't help them, so they contact customer service and hope for the best. Bombarded with questions and requests for photos, and even then might be excused or written off but if they are successful in complaining properly they might just get a refund or swag or even a replacement.
Don't get me wrong, some customer support is amazing but there are alot of horror stories floating around. Word spreads quickly too about the good AND the bad. No one wants a replacement of mouldy weed, it sure tarnishes a company's reputation rather quickly. If it keeps being found unacceptable; it won't be purchased and that's the name of the whole game.
Companies have rebranded over this, brands have died and it's generally their fault. There's a lot that can happen but it's all preventable if done properly and inspected at every point. I'm not going to give guidelines because health canada has their own rules and acceptance levels which might be more strict or less than any I could set here.
This just goes back to quality and cost to the consumers and the expectations that were set by all. It's unfortunate when problems do arise and reputations are tarnished, especially in this extremely fickle market.
There are ways to come back from such embarrassments, like apologising, making it right and proving you're doing something about it. Instead most companies either try to sweep it under the rug or pay to keep people silent. Luckily no one is keeping tabs on every batch of bad products or a history of failed brands and lp's. If there was, I'd love to read those tomes of cannabis history.
We ask for better, and hope that's what we get.
As always,
Peace, love and pre-rolls
These opinions are mine and mine alone and do not reflect those of CannaViews.