A specification sheet is the document buyers receive most often and scrutinise least.
Most get a quick scan: the purity number looks right, the certifications are listed, the decision moves forward. But the useful information is rarely the headline figure. It is in what is specified precisely, what is specified vaguely, and what is not there at all.
Read the Symbol, Not the Number
“99%+” and “99.1%” are different claims.
The first is a floor with unlimited headroom above it. The second is a measured result from a specific lot. Both can be entirely honest.
But if a specification sheet only ever states “99%+” and the certificates come back at 99.05% every time, you are buying the floor rather than the typical performance.
Ask: what is the typical assay result, and what is the lowest result you would release?
Test Method and Detection Limit
A number without a method is not data.
“THC: ND” means nothing until you know the detection limit behind it. If the limit of detection is 0.05% and your destination market’s threshold is 1 ppm, a non-detect result tells you nothing about compliance.
Any specification reporting a trace-level result should name the method — HPLC, LC-MS/MS — and the detection limit. If it does not, that is the first question to ask.
Specified Versus Mentioned
There is a meaningful difference between these two lines:
- “Heavy metals: pass”
- “Heavy metals: Pb <0.5 ppm, Cd <0.3 ppm, As <0.5 ppm, Hg <0.1 ppm, per USP <232>”
The first is a mention. The second is a specification.
The same applies to residual solvents, pesticides and microbials. If a category appears without numbers behind it, you have not been told what “pass” means — and different laboratories and standards draw that line in genuinely different places.
If your regulatory team ever has to defend a sourcing decision, “pass” will not survive the question. Numbers will.
What’s Missing
The absences usually matter more than what is present. Check for:
No lot number or test date. Then the document is marketing collateral, not documentation. A certificate for a different lot is decoration.
No moisture or water activity on a powder. These drive caking, stability and shelf life.
No shelf life with storage conditions. “24 months” means nothing without the temperature and humidity it assumes.
No particle size or mesh specification on an isolate. This affects dissolution rate and blend uniformity in your process.
No terpene or minor cannabinoid profile on a distillate. Then you do not know what you are actually formulating with.
No bulk density. If your process doses by volume rather than weight, this determines how much active lands in each unit.
The Question Every Line Should Trigger
“Compared to what, and measured how?”
Run that against every row of the next specification sheet you receive. The rows that survive it are real. The rows that do not are where your next production surprise is hiding.
The Seven Questions
Send these to any supplier you are evaluating. They are all things a manufacturer knows about their own material.
- What is the typical assay result versus the release specification?
- What test method and detection limit apply to THC and any trace analytes?
- What are the numeric specifications — not pass/fail — for heavy metals, residual solvents, pesticides and microbials?
- What are the moisture and water activity values?
- What is the shelf life, and what storage conditions does it assume?
- What is the particle or mesh size?
- What is the lot-to-lot variance on the primary assay?
Suppliers who answer all seven completely in one reply are telling you something about how they operate. So are suppliers who cannot.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a spec sheet and a COA? A specification sheet describes what the material should be — the acceptance criteria. A certificate of analysis reports what a specific lot actually tested. You need both.
Why isn’t particle size on most COAs? Certificates of analysis are built around identity and safety testing: purity, contaminants, residual solvents. Physical properties are performance data and usually appear on a separate specification. Request both.
What does “99%+” actually guarantee? A floor. It guarantees the material will not fall below 99%. It says nothing about typical performance, which may be considerably higher or only marginally above the floor.
Is it reasonable to ask for lot-to-lot variance data? Yes, particularly at volume. You are asking about consistency, which is what determines whether your finished product behaves the same way in March as it did in January.
What should I do if a supplier won’t provide detection limits? Treat it as a data point. Accredited laboratories report detection limits as standard. Their absence means they were removed or the certificate is abbreviated.
Want to run the seven questions on our materials? Request a specification sheet and a recent certificate of analysis for any product. Contact sales@cannvital.com.
Cannvital is a bulk cannabinoid manufacturer in Las Vegas, Nevada. cGMP certified under 21 CFR Part 117, 210, 211, FDA-registered, Halal, Kosher and USDA hemp certified.