Cannabis may be a plant, but it's not always as natural as it appears. Somewhere along the way from soil to sale, we've allowed shortcuts, synthetics, and questionable inputs to infiltrate a space rooted in wellness. The result is that today's cannabis products often fall short of the health and safety expectations that consumers and regulators are rapidly adopting.

This poses a growing challenge for an industry already under unprecedented scrutiny. Cannabis operators face increasing pressure not only to comply with evolving state standards but to anticipate federal oversight and align with best practices. In short, regulatory preparedness is no longer optional, it's an operational imperative. 

Those of us in the industry understand the realities of commercialized cultivation and food manufacturing--how the proverbial sausage is made. We know what it takes to produce quality cannabis and how easy it is to compromise for the sake of speed, yield, and price. We've seen it all--over-fertilized crops, flavorless distillate gummies loaded with artificial dyes and colors, products that test clean only because the testing protocols were gamed.

Let's be clear: fast and cheap will always find an audience, but at what cost? 

Recent investigations have only deepened the concerns. A December 2024 LA Times investigation found frequent pesticide contamination in legal cannabis, as well as misleading THC claims and the presence of harmful dilution oils. These findings mirror systemic issues seen across the food and beverage sectors, where consumer demands and government action are rapidly reshaping ingredient safety standards.

In April 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a national phase-out of petroleum-based dyes by the end of 2026. These dyes face outright bans or strict restrictions in parts of Europe and, to a lesser extent, Canada. Additionally, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has also signaled further bans on food and wellness additives that potentially pose health risks. These moves should be interpreted not as regulatory noise, but as a clear direction: consumer products must become cleaner, safer, and more transparent – cannabis products included.

So how do we clean up cannabis and ensure the entire supply chain is ready for what's coming? There are three critical areas of focus:

1. Eliminating Pesticides. Clean cannabis starts with clean cultivation. That means no synthetic pesticides, fungicides, or herbicides – period. Yet, despite state regulations, contaminated cannabis is not an anomaly--it's disturbingly common. Independent tests have found that a significant share of legal products--well over one‑quarter in some studies--carry banned pesticides. When heated, some of these chemicals can convert into harmful byproducts, including cyanide gas, and have been linked to long-term health concerns such as cancer, reproductive harm, and neurological damage.

The problem is twofold. First, enforcement is inconsistent. Second, many testing regimes can be gamed. To ensure true consumer safety, operators must move beyond checkbox compliance and insist on comprehensive CAT4 Testing, which monitors for contaminants across all phases of production: soil, water, flower, and oil. While more rigorous, this approach is essential if the industry wants to evolve from "legal" to "trusted."

2. Committing to Ingredient Transparency. Consumers are demanding labels they can understand and trust. That means no synthetic dyes like Red 40, Yellow 5, or Blue 1, no preservatives, and no artificial sweeteners or flavors with undisclosed chemical compositions. This isn't just about health--it's a good business practice. A 2024 Innova Market insight report found that 66% of consumers are influenced by clean label products and 50% of consumers say they would pay more for clean labels. 

CPG giants like Nestlé S.A. (NSRGY) and General Mills Inc. (GIS) are already reformulating their products to meet growing consumer demand for transparency and clean ingredients. Cannabis companies will need to follow suit--not just to maintain compliance, but to earn consumer trust and secure shelf space in an increasingly competitive market. At KANHA, the company I lead, we prioritize CAT4 testing and use real fruit, plant-based colorants, and minimal processing to ensure product integrity. Brands like Autumn Brands are leading with regenerative agriculture and sustainable cultivation practices, while Papa & Barkley is known for its clean, solventless extraction methods that preserve the full spectrum of the plant. These purpose-driven approaches don't just appease regulators--they resonate with consumers and foster long-term brand loyalty in a wellness-driven economy.

For consumers using cannabis for sleep, anxiety, or chronic pain, there is an implicit trust in the safety of what they’re consuming. Violating that trust puts not just individual brands, but the integrity of the entire industry at risk.

3. Prioritizing Biocompatibility in Formulations. Biocompatibility is just a fancy way of saying that ingredients and additives should work in harmony with the body, not against it. This principle should include everything from emulsifiers and terpenes to flavoring agents. 

Unfortunately, many current formulations rely on additives that may be technically permitted, but biologically disruptive. Take propylene glycol, a common vape ingredient linked to respiratory and organ toxicity when inhaled at vaping temperatures. Or titanium dioxide, which is still used in some gummies and topicals and has been flagged as a potential carcinogen. Even PEGs and synthetic stabilizers have been known to disrupt gut health and trigger inflammatory responses in animal studies.

As evidence mounts, regulators will inevitably respond. Brands that proactively replace these additives with plant-derived binders, gut-safe stabilizers, and clean emulsification methods will be better positioned to meet new compliance thresholds and avoid costly reformulations down the line.

Building Towards a Clean Cannabis Standard

The movement towards cleaner cannabis is not just ethical--it's a matter of resilience, reputation, and risk management. Trust is currency. In a category as heavily scrutinized as ours, cleaning up cultivation and product formulation today will help future-proof businesses against tomorrow's oversight. It can also reduce exposure to legal liabilities, costly product recalls, and irrevocable reputational damage. With class action law firms increasingly targeting companies for mislabeling, false advertising, or contamination issues, getting ahead of these risks now could help operators avoid expensive litigation later. Truth in labeling is no longer just a compliance checkbox, it's a frontline defense against the next wave of lawsuits. 

If the wellness economy is the future of cannabis, as many believe, then aligning with the highest food and health standards is the only viable path forward. We've seen this before in other sectors. Clean-label beauty, once a fringe trend, is now table stakes for prestige skincare. Organic and non-GMO certifications helped natural food brands like Annie's and KIND reshape grocery store shelves. Cannabis can follow a similar arc if the industry chooses to lead rather than react.

At this critical inflection point, the question is no longer whether the cannabis supply chain will be cleaned up but how soon. The companies that invest in safety, transparency, and biocompatibility now will be the ones best positioned to thrive in the federally regulated future ahead.