US: CSQ introduces new standards for retail, warehousing & distribution

After introducing three updated standards this Spring, CSQ is expanding its accredited safety and quality certification program to include standards for Warehousing & Distribution and Retail. The public comment period has begun for two brand-new standards, opening the floor to industry stakeholders, operators, and regulators to provide feedback.

CSQ Retail and CSQ Warehousing & Distribution are the latest CSQ Standards to be released, and similar to CSQ's other core programs, build on established industry best practices, including current Good Handling Practices, or cGHP for retailers, and current Good Distribution Practices, or cGDP, for warehouses and distributors.

"At CSQ we're continuously improving and expanding our program to cover every aspect of the global supply chain from seed-to-sale, and CSQ Retail and CSQ Warehousing & Distributing get us one step closer to this goal," said Darwin Millard, Technical Director of CSQ.

CSQ Warehousing & Distribution will be an accredited, current Good Distribution Practices (cGDP) conformant, safety and quality management, process certification program for the handling, storage, and distribution of cannabinoid-containing materials and cannabinoid-containing products, regardless of regulatory classification, at a legal warehousing or distribution location.

The CSQ Standard for Retail will be an accredited, current Good Handling Practices (cGHP) conformant, safety and quality management, process certification program for the sale of cannabinoid-containing products at a legal retail location. This standard has been divided into two versions, CSQ Retail and CSQ Deli-Style Retail. The scope of each certification program is intended to cover a specific segment of global cannabinoid product retail outlets.

'Deli-style' dispensaries that allow consumers to see and/or smell the cannabis flower in stock before making a purchase will now have their own standard to follow too. CSQ Deli-Style Retail, in addition to the requirements of CSQ Retail, oversees the packing and labeling of cannabinoid herbal materials at the point of sale, the production of cannabinoid pre-rolls at the retail location, and when the end consumer is exposed to cannabinoid herbal materials while in-store. Since deli-style activities include product manufacturing processes, CSQ Deli-Style Retail was uniquely created to conform with both cGHP and current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) requirements.

In addition to these new standards, the CSQ Dietary Supplement Addendum, has also been updated and is open for public comment.