How should I select my flower samples?

There are many legitimate schools of thought on the issue of how to select unbiased samples from a “lot” of agricultural product. All of them share a common goal of selecting a sample that is representative of the lot in question. A representative sample is one that is composed of material that is similar in size, shape, density and overall quality to the majority of material in the lot from which it was selected.

WAC 314-55-101 specifies the total sample size that must be deducted from a cannabis flower lot based on the total size of the lot. The smallest lot size specified is 10 pounds and requires a minimum of 8 1-gram samples be deducted. For 10-20 pound lots, a minimum of 12 samples should be deducted. For 20-30 pound lots, a minimum of 15 samples should be deducted. For 30-40 pound lots, a minimum of 18 samples should be deducted, and for 40-50 pound lots, a minimum of 19 samples should be deducted. The WAC provides no further guidance on this process.

Please note that we are unable to accept flower samples that are less than 8 grams in weight, or that do not contain 8 or more separate pieces of flower sample.

In addition, we are unable to accept flower samples that contain more than 15% moisture. Please ensure all flower samples are dried to that level – our drivers are not permitted to transport uncured flower material, and we are unable to accept them if you drop your samples off in person at the lab.