Montana requires every cannabis product to pass lab testing before it can be sold, and requires the label to carry a QR code linking to that batch’s Certificate of Analysis. Here is how to find yours and what it means.
That is the fastest route to the lab report, and Montana requires it on every label. The code is tied to the exact batch in your hand, not to the brand or the strain in general. If it will not scan, or you want help reading what comes back, bring the package or the batch number to any ForeverGreen and we will pull it up with you.
A Certificate of Analysis is the lab report for one specific batch. It comes from an independent testing laboratory, not from the grower and not from us, and it is tied to a batch or lot number rather than to a brand as a whole. Two runs of the same strain from the same grower produce two different COAs.
The Cannabis Control Division at the Montana Department of Revenue sets the testing rules. For flower, the required quality assurance panels are:
Potency
THCA, THC, total THC, CBDA, CBD, and the other cannabinoids present.
Microbials
Salmonella, shiga toxin-producing E. coli, and pathogenic Aspergillus species, all of which must be non-detectable.
Mycotoxins
Aflatoxin and ochratoxin A, each against a set action level.
Pesticides
Screened against the state’s action levels.
Residual solvents
Relevant to concentrates and extracts, where solvents are used in processing.
Moisture
Flower fails above 15 percent, which is the number that predicts whether mold can take hold.
Foreign matter
Limits on stems, and on seeds and other debris, by weight.
Heavy metals
Tested on a random sampling basis rather than on every batch.
A batch that fails cannot be sold in Montana. Everything is tracked in the state’s seed-to-sale system, which is how any package can be traced back to its lab report and its grower.
Check the batch or lot number on the report against the one on your package. If they do not match, you are looking at a different lot.
Potency and moisture drift over time, so a recent date is a better reflection of what is actually in the jar today.
Potency is the number everyone looks at first. The contaminant panels are the ones that matter for safety.
Total THC is usually higher than the THCA or delta-9 numbers listed on their own, because heat converts THCA into THC. When a label and a COA look like they disagree, that conversion is normally why. Montana also does not allow a total THC figure on the facts panel for products consumed without heat, so a missing number there is the rule working as intended, not an omission.
Alongside the COA link, state rules require the strain name, the seed-to-sale identification number, the harvest or manufacture date, the net quantity, the universal cannabis symbol, the statement that the product has been tested and meets Montana’s requirements, and warnings covering children and pets, addiction, and impaired driving. Ingestible products carry an additional warning that effects may be delayed by two or more hours. Our guide to reading a Montana cannabis label walks through every panel one at a time.
Bring it back. If a package on our shelf cannot be traced to a passing lab report, or a QR code leads somewhere it should not, we want to know before you do. Call the store you bought it from, or send us the batch number.
For use only by adults 21 and older. Keep out of reach of children and pets. Do not drive or operate machinery after use.
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