What is HHC? – Leafly

The cannabinoid derived from hemp has a lot of potential, but it also raises a lot of questions

Amid the wave of hemp-derived cannabinoids flooding the country – delta-8-THC, delta-O-THC, and delta-10-THC among them – few have eluded the public more than HHC. Googling the compound brings up a multitude of conflicting information: about its legality, its effects on the body, and even whether it occurs naturally in the cannabis plant.

HHC extracted from hemp is not THC, but offers a THC-lite experience.

Understanding HHC is complicated because it’s only recently launched and only a handful of retailers sell it, mostly in the form of vape carts. However, the cannabinoid offers a lot of potential; Don’t be surprised if you hear more about it soon.

With state and federal agencies continuing to ban Delta-8-THC, the most popular hemp-derived cannabinoid, HHC offers a little bit more legal promise – and appeal – since it’s not a THC compound at all. It can also elude drug testing, although the evidence for it at this point is purely anecdotal.

“HHC is one of our fastest growing products,” Liam Burns, founder and CEO of Bearly Legal Hemp, a major retailer of the cannabinoid, told Leafly. “It’s because of regulations that banned Delta-8, but people are buying it in states where they can buy Delta-8.”

Read on to learn more about HHC: how it’s made, its effects, its opaque legality, and what other questions remain unanswered.

More about hemp-derived THC

What is HHC anyway?

HHC was first developed by American chemist Roger Adams in 1944 when he added hydrogen molecules to delta-9 THC. This process known as hydrogenation converts THC into hexahydrocannabinol (HHC).

Hydrogenation is not limited to cannabinoid production. A similar process is used to convert vegetable oil into margarine.

While Adams made HHC from conventional cannabis-derived THC, the cannabinoid is now typically obtained through a process that begins with hemp, the low-THC cannabis plant that was federally legalized by Congress in the Agriculture Act of 2018.

How is HHC made?

It’s a multi-step process. First, CBD is extracted from raw hemp, distilled and isolated in powder form. From there it gets a little more complicated.

CBD extracted from hemp serves as the basis for the chemical reaction that HHC creates.

We spoke to Kyle Ray, Colorado Chromatography’s chief operating officer, about the process his company uses. In addition to HHC, Colorado Chromatography also produces CBG, CBN, and other specialized compounds at its facility outside of Denver. (Bearly Legal is one of their clients.)

Ray described HHC manufacturing as a proprietary process that takes place in a chemical reactor. “Think of the reactor as a black box,” Ray said to Leafly. “In goes CBD, out comes HHC.”

Ray describes the HHC as “a golden dark oil that we refine from this stage on” before it is distilled.

Is It Safe to Make HHC?

Richard Sams, Scientific Director at KCA Laboratories in Nicholasville, Kentucky, has been testing HHC products for the past few months (including those from Bearly Legal, by the way). He said Leafly HHC could be safely made in a well-equipped laboratory. But if you expand production, the risks also increase. “The potential risk here is with explosions,” he said.

Colorado Chromatography’s Kyle Ray noted that the company only manufactures its HHC in an “explosion-proof” room. “Everything is grounded,” he said. “There is no potential for static discharge.”

What are the effects of HHC on the mind and body?

There is a lack of consensus on the potency of HHC. The complication stems in part from the fact that in making the cannabinoid the end result is a mixture of two different types of HHC molecules: 9R HHC actively binds to the body’s natural endocannabinoid receptors, while 9S HHC due to its slightly different molecular structure, does this nowhere near as well.

“The one that fits [into the receptors] produces effects similar to “Delta-8-THC, but requires a much higher amount,” said Richard Sams of KCA Laboratories. “With a sufficient dose, THC-like effects can be observed.”

In other words, HHC can have THC-like effects on the mind and body, but HHC is less potent, milligrams-per-milligram, than delta-8 THC. Delta-8-THC itself is generally considered to be about half the strength of the standard Delta-9-THC.

How strong is HHC?

Kyle Ray of Colorado Chromatography told Leafly that while the ratios of active and inactive HHC molecules can vary from batch to batch, they must be at least 50% active to pass the pattern.

I tried it: HHC provided a comfortable and slightly cerebral high with some pain relief.

“Trying to isolate and separate these two would be so cost ineffective that it wouldn’t make a truly viable product,” he said. “Our goal when manufacturing our HHC is always to maximize the amount of active ingredient [compound] and minimize the amount of the less active [compound]. However, it’s never a perfect move. It’s usually somewhere around 2: 1 or 1: 1. “

When it comes to the effects of HHC, Bearly Legal’s Liam Burns is a real believer.

“Personally, I feel energetic at HHC,” he said. “I go to the gym. I’m sharp, my brain is working properly. I usually have back and shoulder pain, but I don’t have pain when I do it.”

A slightly plastic taste aside, my own experience with the company’s HHC vape carts was similarly enjoyable. While the Blue Dream cart didn’t give me the same boost of energy, it provided a pleasant and slightly cerebral high, and it actually soothed my sore muscles as well.

Does HHC show up on a drug test?

Bearly Legal’s Burns believes part of HHC’s appeal comes from evidence suggesting it can bypass drug testing. But – and this is important – he admits that the evidence is only anecdotal. He only hears that from his customers.

James Stephens, vice president of innovation at Creo, a cannabinoid biotech company, has seen similar arguments about HHC. “I also saw it advertised [HHC] doesn’t convert to 11-hydroxy-THC, which is a common metabolite in drug tests, ”he told Leafly. “It could potentially be used to bypass drug testing if that turns out to be true,” he added.

A word to the wise, there is no clear evidence that HHC does not show up on a drug test for marijuana. Don’t bet your job or career on anecdotal evidence.

Is HHC Safe To Consume?

As with any of the new hemp-derived cannabinoids, there is no standard dose and little to no research on the immediate or long-term effects of taking HHC.

Because hemp-derived cannabinoids (including HHC) are not subject to cannabis regulations in legal states for consumption by adults, manufacturers and retailers of HHC products are not required to test their products for efficacy and purity.

However, Bearly Legal does contain third-party test results with their HHC products from KCA Laboratories. These tests show that the vape carts contain around 99% HHC. (Strangely enough, the ratio of 9R and 9S-HHC molecules in the test added up to just over 100%. Colorado Chromatography attributed this to slight deviations within the margin of error).

Binoid, another of HHC’s major retailers, did not respond to multiple requests for comment on this story.

Is HHC Legal?

And now we come to perhaps the thorniest question of all: is HHC legal?

Bearly Legal says yes. The company’s website argues that HHC is made from hemp, not THC, so they should be aware. “HHC vapes, gums, or edibles are perfectly legal at the federal level and will most likely remain legal at the state level,” the website says.

Since HHC occurs in the seeds and pollen of hemp plants, company representatives also argue that it is “not synthetic” and thus a “fully federally legal hemp extraction”.

Other retailers agree. In strange branded content that recently ran on LA Weekly, Binoid claimed the cannabinoid was legal … with the caveat that it could “possibly” be shipped to all 50 states.

Other experts are more skeptical. James Stephens, cannabinoid scientist at Creo, believes that HHC is subject to the Federal Analogue Act, which states that any substance analogous to a Category I drug – in this case conventional THC – is itself a Category I drug would. Since THC remains illegal, HHC would also be illegal. Stephens also believes it has significant similarities to the synthetic drugs K2 and Spice, which mimic THC and are also classified as List 1 drugs.

“I don’t think HHC is legal,” he told Leafly.

Right now, HHC products exist (and thrive) in the murky legal zone between hemp (which is nationally legal) and cannabis (which is not). Until HHC falls under a government regulated system, consumers must weigh the risks and benefits of these compounds for themselves.

Max Savage Levenson

Max Savage Levenson probably has the lowest cannabis tolerance of any writer on the cannabis beat. He also writes on music for Pitchfork, Bandcamp and other bespectacled folk. He is the co-host of The Hash podcast. His dream interview is Tyler the Creator.

View article by Max Savage Levenson

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