Foundation of Cannabis Unified Standards and ASTM International Sign MOU on Cannabis Standards
W. CONSHOHOCKEN, PA., June 12, 2017— Yesterday, global standards organization ASTM International and the Foundation of Cannabis Unified Standards (FOCUS) announced a Memorandum of Understanding to work together to address standardization needs for the cannabis industry.
The agreement, effective immediately, was signed in advance of ASTM International’s new cannabis committee June 11 and 12. The meeting is part of a larger “committee week” event with about 25 committees and 1,500 attendees at the Sheraton Centre Toronto in Ontario, Canada.
Under the agreement, ASTM International will coordinate standards development activities allowing FOCUS to shift resources towards other services.
We are pleased to continue our support for standards development through one of the world’s leading standards organizations. We look forward to participating in this fast-growing group and being able to use ASTM International standards to advance FOCUS certification services.
Lezli Engelking, Founder and President of FOCUS
“FOCUS has played a groundbreaking role to drive standardization in the cannabis industry in recent years,” said Ralph Paroli, Ph.D., the committee’s new chairman and the director of R&D in measurement science and standards at the National Research Council of Canada. “The work that FOCUS has done will be part of the foundation for the new committee, helping us expedite standards development, identify gaps, prevent duplicative efforts, and more.”
Paroli, Engelking, and others are featured in a brief video about the new committee.
In addition, through a license agreement, the committee’s standards will note when FOCUS contributed technical expertise or content from one of its preexisting standards.
Over the past year, after a growing number of requests from industry, the committee on cannabis (designated D37 by ASTM International) formally organized. The group has grown to about 200 members, including businesses, laboratories, associations, governments, and others. Anyone interested in participating can contact rmorgan@astm.org.
About ASTM International
Over 12,000 ASTM standards operate globally. Defined and set by us, they improve the lives of millions every day. Combined with our innovative business services, they enhance performance and help everyone have confidence in the things they buy and use – from the toy in a child’s hand to the aircraft overhead. Working across borders, disciplines, and industries we harness the expertise of over 30,000 members to create consensus and improve performance in manufacturing and materials, products and processes, systems and services. Understanding commercial needs and consumer priorities, we touch every part of everyday life: helping our world work better.
About FOCUS
Founded in 2014, FOCUS addresses the many short comings in quality, consistency and safety that have become evident with the explosive growth of the global cannabis industry. FOCUS is an international, non-profit, cannabis standards development and third-party certification organization dedicated to protecting public health, consumer safety, and safeguarding the environment. FOCUS is not a regulatory agency or industry trade association. This autonomy fosters a principled, objective environment in which comprehensive standards and third party certification services can be developed. FOCUS Standards provide current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) guidelines for key areas of the cannabis industry including Cultivation, Retail, Extraction, Infused Products, Laboratory, Security, Sustainability, and Packaging & Labeling.
Original press release: http://www.astmnewsroom.org/default.aspx?pageid=4326
