Does CBD oil expire? How long does CBD stay good? How do I store CBD oil? If you’re new to the world of CBD, or cannabidiol, you’ve probably thought about these questions. Thankfully, storing CBD oil really isn’t hard — at all. CBD oil also stays good for a long, long time – when stored properly.
However, you still need to be mindful about storing your CBD oil properly to prevent it from becoming cloudy. As with any other perishable product, there are basic steps you should take to extend the shelf life of your CBD oil. In this article, we will be looking at some practices you can follow to store your CBD safely, and go over how long CBD will stay good for.
Does CBD Oil Expire?
Yes, CBD oil (also known as hemp oil) will expire. The good news is, most high-quality CBD oils will stay good for about 1.5 to 2 years if you store them properly. Storing CBD oil products is not hard to do, thankfully.
The main things to remember are to keep your CBD tinctures out of extreme temperatures, and out of light. Extreme temperatures may cause your CBD oil to appear cloudy, and light will actually cause the cannabidiol to turn different colors. Both of these will also cause your shelf life to drastically shorten.
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How to Store CBD Oil
For those of you who don’t already know, I am a military veteran. The military is great at creating acronyms to help people remember information better. For the purpose of storing CBD oil, I’ve come up with a useful acronym of my own: H.A.L.T., which stands for heat, air, light, and time.
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These are the four factors that directly influence how long your CBD oil products will stay good for. Most CBD shops aren’t exactly cheap, so making sure you get the most bang for your buck goes a long way in the CBD world.
Heat
There really isn’t much to mention about heat besides the obvious. Excess exposure to heat isn’t good for your CBD oil — or any other perishable wellness product, for that matter. If you can, store your CBD in an area that is about room temperature.
CBD oil is typically made by heating a carrier oil to roughly 70°C and mixing in cannabinoid extracts. At New Phase Blends, we always use organic medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil as a carrier oil.
If the oil is exposed to high levels of heat, it can come out of suspension. This simply means the carrier oil has separated from the CBD extract, causing it to become cloudy.
This doesn’t affect the quality of the product, but it does make it more difficult to properly dose your CBD oil with a dropper. Be sure to read our guide on what to do with cloudy CBD oil to learn more about this problem and how to fix it.
Air
It is one thing to avoid heat and sunlight and another to prevent air exposure. After all, air is everywhere.
Although most CBD oils come in airtight bottles, a certain level of air exposure cannot be avoided. After all, you need to open the bottle to use the product. But as more air enters the bottle, it will cause the CBD oil to deteriorate over time. Exposure to oxygen results in oxidative stress. It is the same reason you cannot eat leftovers that have been sitting in your refrigerator for three months.
Storing CBD in a Cold Environment
Refrigerating CBD oil helps prolong its shelf life. While the fridge is a possible storage solution for CBD oil, keep in mind that any method of storing CBD oil has its pros and cons.
For instance, refrigeration can result in the thickening of the oil due to the cold. This can make extracting your CBD oil with the dropper harder. To fix this problem, you can run the bottle under hot water for a few seconds.
One thing you don’t want to do is freeze your CBD. This can cause the oil to thicken and become cloudy.
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Keeping CBD Products at Room Temperature
If you prefer to keep your CBD oil at room temperature, you’ll need to pick a place that’s dark and away from heat. At New Phase Blends, we recommend storing our oils at a room temperature of around 70°F (21°C). Prolonged exposure to higher temperatures will lead to the deterioration of the cannabinoids and terpenes in the oil.
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Some safe locations for storing CBD are dark pantries, cupboards, closets, and drawers. The temperatures in these places typically remain cool. Keep the bottle away from things like your oven, heating vents, and stove. This is because heat can react with the minerals in the oil, changing the molecular composition of the solution.
Light
Avoid keeping your CBD oil in places exposed to direct sunlight, such as windowsills, countertops, and high shelves. It’s also a good idea to avoid storing your CBD in places with artificial sources of heat, such as shelves with constant lighting.
Research shows that exposure to light is the most significant contributor to cannabinoid deterioration. This is also the reason why CBD is typically sold in amber glass bottles, which provide excellent UV protection and reduce the risk of the oil being exposed to light.
When shopping for CBD oil, it’s a good idea to check if it comes in a bottle labeled ”amber,” ”UV protection,” or ”sun protection.”
Storing CBD oil in a clear container is likely to cause the CBD oil to change colors quickly. Take a look at an example of some New Phase Blends distributor samples that come in clear bottles. You’ll see that some of them have changed colors — a LED light left on overnight is the culprit.
While these oils remain safe to ingest, who would want to see that? I know I wouldn’t.
Time
If you store your CBD oil properly, you can expect it to reach a shelf life of up to two years. This time factor, obviously, cannot be avoided. However, the shelf life of your CBD can be maximized if you follow the CBD storage tips in this guide.
Aside from proper storage, the total life span of a CBD product will depend on the manufacturing process and ingredients involved.
Without getting too deep into the science of CBD extraction, there is one extraction that creates CBD with a shorter lifespan: ethanol extraction. Ethanol extraction is simple and can be done at home with basic supply sand tools. But it’s definitely not the best method for creating long-lasting CBD.
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Extraction using ethanol may produce CBD oil with contaminants like chlorophyll, which can reduce the product’s shelf life.
How Long Does CBD Oil Stay Good For?
If you follow the steps in our guide to storing CBD, your CBD oil will stay good for a long time. I can’t vouch for other companies, but you can expect your CBD oil to have a shelf life of about 1.5 to 2 years if you buy New Phase Blends CBD products.
If you find hemp oils of similar quality, you can expect the same, or similar, shelf life. The problem with lower quality CBD items is that they will not stay good for as long. This could be due to many reasons, however, using worse forms of CBD extraction, and low quality carrier oils will cause the tincture to turn bad relatively fast.
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Does CBD Oil Go Bad?
CBD oil does go bad. Some people claim CBD oil doesn’t go bad, and this is not true – at all. While the actual cannabinoid, CBD or cannabidiol, might seem to not go bad, the other ingredients within the CBD oil will. Most companies use some form of a carrier oil like MCT oil, or hemp seed oil, and these oils will go bad. Any flavorings used will probably also go bad, eventually.
How to Tell If CBD Oil Is Bad?
It’s pretty straightforward when it comes to telling if CBD has gone bad, or not. Like any other perishable good, if the CBD oil went bad, it would be discolored, smell differently, and even have a bad taste to it. Some people report that their CBD tincture will become cloudy, instead of clear colored.
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Summary – Shelf Life of CBD Products
So, there you have it. Keep the acronym H.A.L.T. in mind when storing your CBD oil and other CBD products like balms, creams, and edibles. Again, that’s:
- Heat
- Air
- Light
- Time
If you keep these factors in mind when storing your CBD products, you cannot go wrong. Thankfully, CBD is a simple product to store, and its shelf life can reach over two years if stored properly.
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At New Phase Blends, our products are manufactured under strict protocols to ensure consistent shelf life across the entire product range. All CBD oils, edibles, and topicals are reviewed by a third-party laboratory to verify their component ingredients and CBD content. We also work with reliable couriers to ensure that all orders arrive in our customers’ hands in perfect condition. Shop now and get FREE shipping on all items!
References
Biospace: https://www.biospace.com/
CSB Biointerfaces: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30999117/
