On July 10, otherwise referred to as 710, the cannabis community is supposed to flock to pot dispensaries in legal states to celebrate, stock up on and indulge in all things connected to the world of cannabis concentrates. It is a scam right out of the book of Hallmark. But the fabricated sentiment surrounding these kinds of hokey holidays hasn’t stopped pop culture from sucking up to similar concepts, such as Valentines Day, Friendship Day and even Boss’s Day. What kind of brown nosing imbecile celebrates that?
This article is not supposed to be about the great American lunatic and its willingness to latch on to commercially driven merriment designed to get the average consumer to spend more money. Nope. This one is for those members of high society who will participate in what the cannabis trade has so capitalistically deemed 710 – the customer destined to end up with a surplus of wax, live resin and other concentrated variations of THC by the end of the day. This article serves to answer the most common question for this new generation of dabbers: Will these products ever go bad?
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The short answer is most properly stored concentrates have a long shelf life. In some cases, as long as they are not exposed to the elements, it is nothing for these items to stand the test of time. But the quality of the concentrate will inevitably deteriorate the longer they are kept. Some extraction experts say that the second the odor of the product is noticeable the product is in the process of degrading. But this doesn’t mean that the concentrate must be used up quickly. It takes some time for these things to expire – even in unfavorable conditions. But the key to maintaining freshness is proper storage.
“Shatter and oils, especially those that have been winterized, tend to be more shelf stable,” writes Matthew Mongelia for PotGuide.com. “Winterization does not affect THC content, but the reduced amount of lipids means less terpene retention overall. Some consumers report a preference of winterized products for smoothness, so in the end it might come down to personal preference.
“Though winterization can help fend off changes in concentrate, over time, many will become more sugar-like in appearance regardless, a process known as nucleation,” he added. “Simply put, nucleation is when homogenized particles within the hash (think contaminants, lipids and cannabinoids) begin to separate. Many factors can contribute to or hinder the nucleation process, such as time, temperature, contaminants and lipid content.”
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Concentrates age in the same way as flower. Eventually, the product, regardless of whether it is bud or some other mad science preparation, will lose some of its potency. Some reports show that cannabis products left out at room tempature for up to 12 months are at risk of losing around 17 percent of their THC. But a “two-year-old concentrate could still retain 66% of its potency, and three-year old 51%, and so on,” according to Pot Guide.
So before you spend all of your hard earned cash stocking up on cannabis concentrates, it is important to consider a few things. If you have the resources to properly store these products, keeping their exposure to light, heat and air to a minimum, everything should be fine. However, Fresh is always best. These products are best when consumed within six months. So, unless you’re a tourist in a legal state, you can always buy more tomorrow – even if it is 711.
