We bought Delta-8 THC from a head shop. We found that
In a head shop in the southern Californian town of Oxnard, glass cases are lined with Delta-8 THC edibles and vape cartridges, wrapped in vibrant, colorful packaging, most of them with QR codes. It’s a sight these days common in head shops, vape outlets, and tobacco shops across the country.
We left the store with three Delta 8 products. Two of them turned out to be fakes.
But where do these products come from? Who does it How do consumers know they are not filled with harmful pollutants, heavy metals, or even a potentially deadly additive like vitamin E oil?
The answer: they don’t.
Here’s why. When medical and recreational cannabis was legalized, every state had a system of regulation that determined what, how, where, and by whom all the various cannabis products were made and sold. In California, special labels appear on products grown or manufactured by state-licensed companies that adhere to strict safety and potency rules.
This is not the case with any unlicensed store selling Delta-8 products.
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No rules, not right
There are no rules as to how or where these stores get their products. This enables sketchy unbranded products to be sold without security screening or traceability.
Of course, legitimate Delta-8 products can be found in these stores. However, it is not exactly clear how state regulators would or could prevent the sale of contaminated Delta-8 products in random retail stores in malls.
Some heavy metals and contaminants have already been found in Delta-8 products that have been tested by the US Cannabis Council, an industrial trade group. A recent Leafly research into the safety of Delta-8 products revealed a number of reasons to consider before buying.
At the Oxnard store we bought three Delta-8 products: one that looked relatively real on the surface, and two more that didn’t.
Here’s what we found
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EightySix Delta-8 infused rubbers: Real
EightySix brand Delta-8 THC gummies, apple-jade flavor
A quick scan of the QR code leads to a link with a certificate of analysis or COA for each strain. This document provides a breakdown of the effectiveness and contamination levels as demonstrated by testing by a third-party laboratory.
The lab tests were actually done on the EightySix rubbers, which was a good sign.
The COA for this pack of gummies states that it was created for EightySix, the same brand that is listed on the product itself. This is a good sign. When COAs are changed or faked, the name of the customer or customer often changes, according to several industry experts we spoke to.
“Last year I saw more and more of my COAs – for products that I made – were changing,” recalls Russell Lombard, CEO of Denver, Colorado-based wholesaler Canna Redux Hemp Extracts. “My company name [had been] away.”
“I saw one COA in particular that was 99% Delta-8,” Lombard added. “It appeared on forums from various resellers for six months, reprinted, and represented various products … and I didn’t even know these people.”
Consultation with the laboratory
The lab listed in the COA for the EightySix gummies was PharmLabs San Diego, a licensed cannabis testing facility.
When we called, Elijah Leach, a laboratory specimen collection specialist, confirmed that PharmLabs is working with EightySix, a well-respected brand in the Delta-8 area of California.
If the lab test looks suspicious on the label, call the lab directly. They like to check.
Leach also said the facility received calls to COAs from other brands wearing the lab’s logo, which it turns out to be fake.
“You can usually tell if it’s wrong by the fact that it’s formatted incorrectly,” Leach explained. There are little imperfections, he said, like strange text and line spacing on the documents. Calling the lab is a surefire way to find out if the COA you are looking at really applies to the product you are purchasing.
The COA for EightySix’s rubbers gave test results for heavy metals such as arsenic and lead and other contaminants. These results all met California’s legal cannabis safety standards. The product also met the federal legal standard of less than 0.3% Delta-9 THC.
“We take it very seriously when it comes to our tests,” said Connor Magallames, Operations Manager at EightySix.
Cake Delta-8 vape cartridge: Fake
Cake brand disposable vape cartridge, birthday cake variety
The packaging design for this Cake product looked suspiciously similar to the illegal vape cartridges that spread vape lung injuries across America in 2019. The “C” on the box mimicked the logo of the well-known licensed brand Cookies, which was widely copied for two years before illegal vape-cart manufacturers.
Another warning: the overall look and feel of the product have a much less sophisticated design than the sleek packaging of the EightySix rubbers.
But there is a QR code. So we scanned it.
This resulted in a Certificate of Analysis issued by Encore Labs of Pasadena, CA. The test results showed that the product contained around 78.7% Delta-8 THC. However, no concentrations for pollutants or heavy metals were given.
This is not good news, but it wasn’t our main concern.
On the COA, the customer’s name was listed as SD Distro – not Cake, the brand depicted on the packaging.
Let’s ask in the lab
When we called Encore Labs, the company’s operations manager, Jessica Burnham, told us that the facility’s COA had the customer’s name on record as Cake Distribution. But that was inconsistent with the COA that was shown to us online.
And that wasn’t the only difference.
We have verified the address listed under the customer’s name on the COA. The COA on file with Encore Labs does not contain the same address. And it’s not a corporate headquarters or storefront address, but rather a luxury apartment building in Santa Ana, California.
A ghost address
Neither this address nor anything else led us to an actual business or brand.
Delta-8 vape carts in the same Cake box are sold online by tons of retailers, but they cannot be found on any single reputable brand’s website.
Fake lab test, fake product. Don’t breathe in this mysterious vape oil.
Basically, it cannot be said where the product comes from. That’s a huge red flag.
We filled out a contact form on the website referred to by the QR code but never heard anything. No phone number or email was given.
The COA appears to be fake.
Encore Labs’ Burnham agreed. She said it wasn’t the first time this had happened. “Buy products from a reliable dealer,” she advised.
‘Flamin’ Hot Cheetos’ enriched with Delta-8: Counterfeit
Runtz hot cheese snacks
These edibles are very different from the gummy bears made by EightySix.
First, there is no brand or company listed on the packaging. That’s a huge red flag that should stop your purchase right there.
No reputable brand would risk legal setback by selling a product that mimics Hot Cheetos. Buyers beware.
Second, their packaging design mimics a well-known national non-cannabis brand (Cheetos by Frito-Lay) and their popular product Flamin ‘Hot Cheetos. No established reputable company would rip off a Frito-Lay product so shamelessly. The Frito-Lay legal department would overwhelm her in a hot minute.
This is a common theme across Delta-8 products, reflecting the 2019-2020 vaping crisis: products that are packaged to look like either a popular, legal cannabis brand like Cookies, or a popular food or confectionery brand like Cheetos.
In the head shop, the “hot cheese snacks” from Runtz were placed next to other edibles that looked like chips Ahoy! and Doritos. In fact, the bag of infused fake Doritos didn’t even have a different name – it was literally just a red bag of nacho cheese flavored Doritos.
The only thing that differentiated it from a real bag of Doritos was a sticker that said “Delta 8 THC 21+” and another small logo with a weed leaf, exclamation mark and “CA” – the same label that was used on legal, regulated weed products is. If it wasn’t sold from a display case in a head shop, one would probably assume it was a regular Doritos.
This is how all edible snacks, including the fake Flamin ‘Hot Cheetos, have been labeled.
Always look for the QR code
The test factor for cheese snacks and other edibles? No QR code.
Neither of them had a QR code, so there is absolutely no way of knowing what is inside. In fact, the cheese snacks didn’t even bother telling consumers how many milligrams of THC were in the bag.
If you don’t know what’s in a product, you just can’t tell how safe or effective it really is.
Leafly is researching: The Delta-8 mania
Marissa Wenzke
Marissa Wenzke reports on cannabis in Los Angeles for Leafly. She is a graduate of Columbia Journalism School and works as a digital news producer for KTLA news programs.
View article by Marissa Wenzke
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