Today, the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) issued its first cannabis testing accreditation to Legend Technical Services, Inc., located in St. Paul, MN. The laboratory was assessed to ISO/IEC 17025 – General Requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories and is currently able to test medical cannabis under Minnesota’s Medical Cannabis Registry Program (according to Minnesota Statutes, Sections 152.22 through 152.37).

The A2LA Cannabis Accreditation Program establishes a standard of quality for the testing of cannabis and cannabis-derived products, including hemp, oils, and hash concentrates. Currently, a significant number of the states, where cannabis has been legalized for recreational and/or medical use, specify or encourage laboratory accreditation to the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025. Because each state’s specific requirements for cannabis testing tend to vary, one of A2LA’s focuses is on working with state regulators to establish consistent, regulatory requirements and to offer accreditation to any specific state requirements, if necessary. These efforts help to ensure that A2LA accreditation offers the highest level of recognition and provides the most value to the laboratory and to users of these products.

A2LA is currently accepting new applications for accreditation from testing laboratories under the Cannabis Testing Program. In addition, laboratories that currently hold ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation with A2LA and that are located in states where medical or recreational cannabis has been legalized may expand their existing Scope of Accreditation to include these tests.