Choosing a High-Quality Hemp Oil
Few people have heard of the wellness benefits of hemp oil. Even fewer understand what’s involved in turning a plant into an oil. And here at Healthy Hemp Pet, good hemp oil is the basis for every formula we sell. So, let’s really dig in to what makes a high quality hemp oil!
Country of Origin
We don’t mean to say that there aren’t good hemp oils coming from foreign sources. But there are definitely bad ones. In our research, we tested hemp oils from Europe and China and found heavy metals, toxins, and/or mysterious chemicals. For us, the first step in choosing a quality hemp oil is to make sure it’s grown locally. We use a grower located right in Colorado.
Organic vs Conventionally Grown
This is more of a personal choice, but we think that less intervention is better. Our partner’s hemp greenhouse is USDA certified organic. They use only ladybugs for pest control and practice biodynamic farming techniques. Plus, they’re a zero waste facility! We love supporting a company dedicated to living gently and improving wellness.
Industrial vs Therapeutic Hemp
Hemp isn’t just grown for its therapeutic properties. It’s a super plant that grows some of the strongest fibers found in nature. Those fibers can be used to make plastics stronger than steel! But that kind of hemp is grown to be strong, not therapeutic. One of the quickest ways to make a cheap hemp oil is to use the leftovers of hemp grown for industrial purposes. The plants grown for their fibers don’t have high levels of cannabinoids and terpenes. Those are the compounds that produce wellness benefits. You need hemp plants selectively grown just for consumption. Ironically, those cheap products end up costing more in the end. Users have to take much higher doses to see the same effects.
Flowers vs Seeds/Stalks/Leaves
Hemp stalks and seeds do have excellent health properties and applications. However, they don’t have the concentrations of terpenes and cannabinoids to make the cut for our oil. Our high quality hemp oil uses only the leaves and flowers of the plant. Those are the parts with the highest concentrations of cannabinoids and terpenes.
Distillation Process & Solvents
Our partner uses a trademarked, breakthrough technique that uses only heated air to gently extract cannabinoids and terpenes using evaporation. Vapors are collected, condensed, and distilled to make a product with higher levels of natural terpenes and improved taste. Some hemp oils use ethanol or butane to distill their final product, which can effect taste.
Full Spectrum vs Isolate
There are a lot of thoughts on the discussion between isolates and full-spectrum oils. Isolates do provide the highest levels of the molecule cannabidiol. However, terpenes are sort of like the hunger you feel before a meal. Hunger won’t change the meal, but your experience of it may be very different. Terpenes are organic compounds most popularized by essential oils. They have subtle effects on the body (many of them not well understood.) But overall, we know they enhance the function of cannabidiol. We find that high concentrations of cannabidiol aren’t as important as the wellness-enhancing effects of full-spectrum hemp oil.
Testing for Consistency
How do we know that our high quality hemp oil has higher levels of terpenes and cannabinoids? You can feel the effects, but we also test for them. Our partner tests their products in-house. Those results are then verified by independent labs. These analyses help us verify that our products deliver the same benefits, every time, no matter the batch. So, you’ll never have to adjust the size of the serving because you bought a new bottle or changed flavors.
We hope this helps you understand our requirements for the hemp oil in Healthy Hemp Pet products!
