Why Is CBD Oil So Expensive? 6 Major Reasons Behind The Price Tag

CBD oil can be quite expensive because of six key factors:

• Cultivating hemp is challenging
• CBD extraction and refinement costs
• Distribution and marketing hassles 
• Quality control and lab testing fees
• Legal restrictions
• High demand for CBD products

Let’s explore these in detail…  

Why Is CBD Oil So Expensive?

Here’s what makes your favourite CBD oil expensive:

1. Hemp Farming Is Not Easy 

If a hemp plant produces more THC than legally allowed, the farmer must destroy it. 

How does this affect the price of CBD oil?

Farmers must constantly monitor the plant’s THC content to avoid that. This requires additional labour and employee costs.

Moreover, most cannabis plant growers require expensive machinery (like combine harvesters) to harvest hemp.

2. CBD Extraction and Refinement Costs

There are two major ways to extract CBD (cannabidiol):  

1. Ethanol extraction: Involves using alcohol (like ethanol) to scale up CBD production.
2. Supercritical Carbon Dioxide: The CO2 extraction method is used to extract smaller batches of CBD. It produces better quality CBD products with a higher potency.

Both methods require expensive calibrated machines, driving up the cost of CBD oil. 

What’s more?
The final product you get after extraction is usually full spectrum CBD oil. This contains CBD, THC, terpenes, plant compounds, and other cannabinoids. 

But THC is illegal in countries like the UK. 

So the extract must undergo a second CBD extraction process to produce THC-free broad spectrum CBD oil. 

And if you want CBD isolate (pure CBD) products, a third extraction process is required. 

All these processes increase CBD prices.  

3. Distribution and Marketing Hassles

For a CBD brand to label its CBD product as organic, it must meet rigorous standards and pass regular inspections. This affects the final CBD oil price. 

Moreover, due to tough regulations and misconceptions about cannabis, retailers often hesitate to stock CBD products. 

There are also restrictions on advertising CBD products. 

This adds to the CBD price as CBD producers are forced to look at other marketing avenues (where the returns may not be high). 

4. Quality Control and Lab Testing Fees

Since the CBD industry in the UK is still largely unregulated, third-party labs need to verify what’s in a CBD product. 

How much CBD does the product contain?

Does it have toxins like heavy metals and pesticides?

So for every CBD oil product, CBD manufacturers must send a sample from each batch for analysis — increasing the cost of the final product.

5. Legal Restrictions 

The legal status of hemp is complicated worldwide. 

For instance, the hemp grown within the UK can’t be used for CBD production in the country. 

CBD oil products sold in the UK are made from hemp grown in other countries. This adds importation and transport costs to the final price point. 

6. High Demand  

The UK’s CBD market experienced a massive demand increase after the legalisation of CBD in the country. 

However, the supply of high-quality CBD products is fairly limited. So it’s another reason behind the high prices of CBD Oil.

Why You Must Avoid Cheap CBD Oil

Yes, high-quality CBD oils are expensive. 

But should you go for cheaper ones? Especially if you’re a first time buyer?

Never!

Cheap CBD oils are usually knock-offs that don’t provide any health benefits. They also have health and safety concerns due to their low-quality manufacturing processes. 

Moreover, a cheap CBD oil may just be hemp oil!

How are they different?

• CBD oil is produced from the hemp plant’s flowers, leaves, and stems. 
• Hemp seed oil (hemp oil) is made from crushed hemp seeds and has almost no CBD content. Consuming it is the same as chugging olive oil! 

How To Buy High Quality CBD Oil

Remember these six tips the next time you shop for CBD oil:

• Buy from reputable stores like Amazon, Boots, Holland & Barrett, and GreenBox. 
• Check the product details, including the amount of CBD (in mg), on the label.
• If there is no “CBD extract,” “hemp extract,” or something similar on the label, don’t add it to your cart. 
• Look for a third-party lab’s certificate of analysis to verify the product quality.
• Go for products from a trusted CBD company like Love Hemp or Vitality CBD.   
• If the CBD oil cost is less than £12, it’s probably hemp seed oil.

Find The Best CBD Oil For Your Budget In The UK

There are several factors behind CBD oil’s hefty price tag.

But here’s some good news for CBD users:

As more people embrace CBD oil’s benefits, there’ll be favourable legalities. So you can expect the cost to decrease over time. 

Looking for fantastic CBD products at reasonable prices?

Explore GreenBox’s high-quality products, such as CBD oils, CBD topicals, CBD bath bombs, CBD capsules, and even CBD gummies.