Published by the European Cannabis Institute · Educational and professional reference content.
The container-closure system must preserve the product throughout transport, storage and use. For cannabis products, moisture, oxygen, light and volatile-component loss can all be critical.
Define the protection needed
The required barrier depends on dosage form and degradation pathways. Flower, oil, capsules and sprays do not have identical packaging needs.
Qualification strategy
Testing may include seal integrity, leak testing, torque, dimensional checks, transport simulation and barrier-property studies. The programme should be linked to product stability.
Compatibility
Extractables, leachables, adsorption and permeation can change product quality. Compatibility studies should consider the entire contact system, including liners, droppers and adhesives.
Lifecycle controls
Supplier changes, tooling changes, recycled-content changes and component substitutions require formal change assessment because they can alter package performance.
ECI perspective
Strong cannabis quality systems connect scientific evidence, product knowledge, validated methods and controlled operations. Organisations should document the rationale for their decisions and update it as evidence, processes and regulatory expectations evolve.
References
- USP <1207> — Package Integrity Evaluation
- EU GMP Annex 1 (2022) — Container Closure Integrity
- ICH Q1A(R2) — Stability Testing of New Drug Substances and Products
- EMA Guideline on Plastic Immediate Packaging Materials
Confirm the current effective version and national applicability before operational, regulatory or clinical use.