By: Alexandra McDougall
If you’ve read up on hemp crude oil, you know that there are a variety of ways to extract it. You will also know that hemp crude oil contains a host of cannabinoids, and often trace amounts of THC. When ingesting hemp for its health benefits or ability to reduce stress, you may not want any THC in your system. If you are looking for a CBD or CBG product you can take without worry, T-free distillate is an excellent option.
As a hemp grower, it’s beneficial to extract T-free distillate to have a more attractive product to sell to manufacturers.
Broad Spectrum CBD
Broad spectrum CBD and CBG oil goes through multiple levels of refinement to be free from THC. This is how you get a t-free distillate. While the legal limit for THC is .03 percent in hemp, t-free distillate has non-detectable levels in its oil.
There are two different ways to create a t-free distillate. One involves using a CBD or CBG isolate as a base, and adding in only the terpenes and cannabinoids you want. Like cooking from scratch, you don’t have to include anything in your recipe that you don’t want. This allows you to create a product you know is in demand.
The second technique is to process and refine full spectrum CBD or CBG oil until it no longer contains any THC.
Water soluble distillate
Anyone who has ever tried to make vinaigrette from scratch knows that oil and vinegar don’t combine on their own. The process of emulsification requires one ingredient to get broken up into millions of tiny droplets. Only then can those drops become suspended in the other ingredient. For salad dressings, this happens after whisking the ingredients together.
You can do the same thing with a t-free distillate. This creates a water-soluble form that can mix with other ingredients. You begin by dissolving distillate into a base (a flavorless, colorless oil.) Then, using a high-pressure emulsification machine, you break up the oil. Once that’s done, you can then suspend the droplets into water or use it to enhance the flavor of a beverage.
The refinement process to create t-free distillate
The goal of the refinement process is to end up with the purest end product possible. Working with an extractor who understands that refinement may be multi-stepped is important. Undesired plant lipids, waxes and fats can linger in hemp crude oil, if not properly removed. This means your distillate isn’t as high-quality as it could be. One way to handle this issue is through winterization.
Winterization is when you run hemp extract through an alcohol wash after an initial extraction. This removes undesired materials. This is a popular, safe and clean method for further refinement. Ethanol gets mixed with hemp crude oil and frozen for 24 hours. Afterward, the frozen waxes that accumulate get removed.
From there, you’re able to get a distillate that’s worth more because of its quality.
Extracting and refining hemp
Creating t-free distillate is just one option farmers have when processing their hemp crude oil. Manufacturer demand will influence how much t-free distillate you want to make. Because it’s hemp in its purest form, it most likely will continue being a popular product.
To learn more about your options for refining hemp crude oil, contact Arbor Vita8. We’re here to help you through the entire process of hemp farming, from planting to cultivation and beyond.
