If you don’t include the required information, this can lead to serious penalties such as fines, the loss of your license to manufacture cannabis or even the loss of your entire business.
The cannabis industry has to walk a difficult line between making packaging appealing to customers while also including the necessary information.
Managing this balancing act can be difficult but no matter what design you settle on, you can’t leave out the necessary information.
In this article, we will take a look at how to package and label cannabis.
Important Information
Before we begin to take a closer look at exactly what information you need to include on the labels, we need to explain a couple of important points.
The regulations for cannabis labels can frequently change. Your business should keep up to date with these changes and implement any adjustments as soon as possible.
It doesn’t matter if the changes are only minor, if you want your business to remain legally compliant you need to accommodate all changes to the regulations.
You also need to be aware that different states can have different local regulations. You need to comply with these if you wish to sell your product in these states.
For example, some states require that packaging is resalable and others require transparent packaging. It’s imperative that you check the regulations in any region you aim to sell your products.
Branding
Although ensuring that your packaging and labels are legally compliant is important, we will first consider how to brand your products.
It’s important to establish a company brand identity that quickly tells your potential customers who you are and what they can expect from your products.
This can take a lot of research, development, and testing before you settle on a design and logo that displays your brand in the way you want it to be received.
When you are designing and testing your branding, keep in mind that there are necessary pieces of information that will need to be on your labels.
You will need to balance this information with your logos so that the labels don’t become too cluttered.
The aim of your branding should be to quickly reassure customers that they are buying a quality product that is designed for them and their needs.
Your logo and design should be memorable and inspire loyalty in your customer base.
Product Packaging
There are numerous ways that you can package your cannabis product. When you choose your packaging, you should have three main concerns.
Long Storage
The first of these is that it will be practical. It should help keep your product as fresh as possible for as long as possible.
Some of the more traditional popular forms of packaging include glass jars, metal tens, and plastic bottles or tubes. These are all great at keeping your product fresh.
More recently, many cannabis companies have begun using plastic film pouches as these not only keep cannabis fresh but are also a more cost-effective option.
Safety
Whatever material you choose, it needs to have a secure closing that will not only keep the cannabis fresh, but will keep it safe from children.
Cannabis packaging needs to meet any legal requirements for child safety so keep this in mind as you make your choice.
Branding
Creating a distinct and unique logo for your brand is useless if your packaging doesn’t have enough space to carry the labels.
One way to ensure that both your branding and all of the regulated information are adequately displayed is to have packaging that is large enough to hold it all.
Regulated Information
As we stated earlier, the regulated information required on the label can differ depending on the state. However, we will discuss some of the most commonly required information in this section.3
Primary Label
This is the label that is placed in a prominent location on either the front or the top of your product. Typically, the information included on a primary label includes;
Brand name – this can also include your brand logo if you have one
Identity – what form does the cannabis take? For example, is it oil, cream, or gummies?
Net contents – this is how much of the product is contained in the packaging. It can be expressed as weight or count, depending on the form of the product
Supplement and nutrition facts – this includes information such as serving sizes, calories, and daily value percentages. Ideally, this should be on the primary panel but if there is no space, it can be included on the secondary panel
Information Panel/Secondary Panel
This label is usually included on the back or the side of the packaging. You can include it on the front next to the primary label if you wish and have the space.
Manufacturer information – include the full name of your business and any contact information
Strain, batch, lot number, and amount – include the information about the strain of cannabis, amount included, and batch or lot number
Ingredients – this can go on either panel. List all of the ingredients used in your product, from the most to least
Dates – this includes dates such as sell-by and best-by dates. These can go on either panel
Warnings
Your labels should also include the applicable warnings for the product. The exact warnings that need to be included and where they should be placed differ greatly from state to state.
Final Thoughts
In this article, we took an in-depth look at the packaging and labeling of cannabis products.
When you manufacture cannabis products for sale, there are several considerations you need to take into account to ensure that your packaging and labeling meet the regulations of the states your product is being sold in.
We hope that the information in this article will help you package and label your cannabis products but remember to check the regulations before you sell your product.
With cannabis becoming legal in more places (about time!) I think that more people need to become acquainted with it and how to use it.
Hi, my name is David Barton and I have been using medical cannabis for almost a year.
After I developed panic attacks in my final year of college, I felt powerless. The anxiety was so bad that I could barely leave the house. I couldn’t maintain a job, I alienated myself from my friends and family, and I felt downright miserable.
No one around me used cannabis, so I had to learn all about it on my own while using it. It was more difficult than you might think!
That is why I created my website, to teach anyone else struggling all they need to know about cannabis. It’s a fun topic to learn about, and I’m sure you’ll all need this information in the future!
