FFL now testing Delta-8 THC

Watch & Listen to FFL Laboratory Director and Toxicologist Bridget Lorenz Lemberg introduce Delta-8 testing here:

As states across the nation rush to regulate Delta-8, a Cannabis compound often not covered by current laws and rules regulating marijuana, a Michigan company is providing one of the only tests for detecting who is using it.

Forensic Fluids Laboratories in Kalamazoo is able to use oral fluid to detect Delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol (Delta-8 THC), which can be extracted from hemp.  Delta-8’s cousin, Delta-9, is the primary form of THC found in most marijuana products. An increasing number of states are moving to ban the sale of Delta-8 THC or, in states where marijuana use is legal, to regulate it the same as Delta-9 THC.

“This test gives us the ability to tell our customers whether their clients are using Delta-8 THC or regular Delta-9 THC, which will be an important finding in states where using Delta-8 is illegal or in a gray area,” said Bridget Lorenz Lemberg, FFL Laboratory Director and Toxicologist. “FFL is offering one of the only ways to detect Delta-8 THC and enhance the collection of data of significant importance to courts, policy and health leaders — and employers.”

Delta-8 THC is a psychoactive compound that can cause impairment similar to Delta-9 THC. Delta-8 THC has become increasingly popular as a milder, cheaper alternative to legalized marijuana or to cannabidiol (CBD) products, which do not contain THC. Like many THC products, Delta-8 THC does not have a well-defined legal status. The federal government continues to consider cannabis an illegal drug while many states have legalized it.

Using oral fluid has a number of benefits over other testing measures that rely on blood or urine, including ease of collection and accuracy. Oral fluid can be collected painlessly within minutes, and it’s virtually impossible to falsify. Oral fluid is not considered a biohazard and can detect drugs immediately after the most recent use and up to four days later.

The company now counts Delta-8 THC among the more than 160 compounds in oral fluid it can detect.