Judging Criteria and Testing Protocol/Disqualification ...

Judging Criteria and Testing Protocol/Disqualification Thresholds

Judging Criteria
The criteria listed below are not intended to be complete or set in stone: this is simply a
broad overview of items that the judges may consider. Some judges will use point systems
to evaluate specific aspects of entries, while others may take a more general approach. The
Emerald Cup’s judges are carefully selected, and we defer to their own individual expertise
and experience in the details of how they evaluate entries.

Flowers

• Visual examination will consider crystals, colors, and density.
• Olfactory and consumption tests will consider fragrance, taste, and smoothness.
• Additional considerations will include duration, quality, and potency of effect.

Breeders’ Cup
• The Breeders’ Cup will be awarded to the highest-ranked Flowers competition entry
that was also bred by the competition entrant.

Best Terpenes
• The award for Best Terpenes will go to an entry with a unique, distinctive, and
outstanding terpene profile.

Concentrates
• Visual examination will consider look, color, and consistency.
• Olfactory and consumption test will consider smell, taste, residual level.
• Additional considerations will include duration, quality, and potency of effect.

Edibles
• Physical examination will consider packaging, visual appeal, aroma, and freshness.
• Ingestible test will consider cannabis flavor, overall taste, and product consistency.
• Additional considerations will include onset, duration, quality, and potency of effect.

Tinctures
• Physical examination will consider packaging, portability, cannabis aroma, overall
aroma, and product consistency.
• Application evaluation will consider ease of application, absorption, and taste.
• Additional considerations will include onset, duration, quality, and potency of effect.

Topicals
• Physical examination will consider packaging, visual appeal, portability, cannabis
aroma, overall aroma, and product consistency.
• Application evaluation will consider ease of application, absorption, color, and
aroma duration.
• Additional considerations will include onset, duration, quality, and potency of effect.

The Emerald Cup 2015 Judging Criteria and Testing Protocol/Disqualification Thresholds

Testing Protocol and Disqualification Thresholds
Cannabis testing provides our judges with important information about the safety, quality,
and potency of your medicine. It also helps confirm the integrity of our organic and
sustainably-minded cannabis competition. The Emerald Cup 2015 has adopted
disqualification thresholds based on AHPA guidance policies for herbal products and
prospective regulatory standards under recently passed laws. Disqualified entries will not
be returned for any reason. More information on testing procedures is available at
www.sclabs.com.

Pesticide Testing

• For the health and safety of our judges and our community, all entries in all flower,
concentrate, tincture, and topical categories will undergo pesticide testing.

• Testing detects pesticides using high performance liquid chromatography in
conjunction with tandem mass spectrometry (LC/MS/MS.)

• Your entry will be immediately disqualified if any of the following pesticides,
fungicides, or plant-growth regulators are detected: acequinocyl, bifenazate,
pyrethrium, daminozide, spirotetramat, fenoxycarb, paclobutrazol, spiromesifen,
spinosad, abamectin, imidacloprid, or myclobutanil.

Microbiological Screening
• For the health and safety of our judges and our community, all entries in all
categories will undergo microbiological testing.

• Testing detects yeasts, molds, bacteria, and fungi using 3M Petrifilm and other AOAC
accepted plating methods.

• Your entry will be immediately disqualified if:
o Total Yeast and Mold > 100,000 colony-forming units per gram (cfu); or
o Total Aerobic Plate Count > 10,000,000 cfu; or
o Pseudomonas/Shigella > 10,000 cfu; or
o Coliforms > 10,000 cfu; or
o E. coli > 0 cfu; or
o Salmonella > 0 cfu.

Residual Solvents Testing
• For the health and safety of our judges and our community, all entries in all
concentrate categories will undergo residual solvent testing.

• Testing detects residual solvents using gas chromatography in conjunction with
headspace sampling.

• Your entry will be immediately disqualified if any of the following solvents are
detected: neopentane, isopentane, ethanol, isobutane, n-pentane, cyclohexane,
benzene, n-butane, 2-methylpentane, propane, methanol, n-heptane, n-hexane, 2,2-
dimethylbutane, 3-methylpentane, or isopropanol.



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The Emerald Cup 2015 Judging Criteria and Testing Protocol/Disqualification Thresholds

Potency Testing
• In order to provide useful information to our judges and our community, all entries
in all categories will undergo potency testing.

• Testing will detect levels of THC, THCA, CBD, CBDA, and CBN using high
performance liquid chromatography.

• Your CBD entry (in any CBD category) will be disqualified if potency testing reveals
a CBD:THC ratio of less than one (i.e. relatively less CBD than THC).

Terpenes
• In order to provide useful information to our judges and our community, all entries
in all flower and concentrate categories will undergo terpene testing.

• Testing will detect levels of the following terpenes using gas chromatography/flame
ionized detection: nerolidol, β-pinene, p-cymene, isopulgeol, geranyl acetate,
fenchol, pulegone, menthol, α-humulene, α-bisabolol, (+)-3-carene, (-) caryophyllene
oxide, α-pinene, eucalyptol, myrcene, terpinolene, β-caryophyllene, limonene,
geraniol, linalool, (+) valencene, camphene, sabinene, guaiol, phytol, terpineol,
camphor, isoborneol, α-terpinene, α-phellandrene, and α-cedrene.

Organic Ingredients
• Any edible, topical, or tincture entry found to contain inorganic ingredients, other
than those allowed under National Organic Program standards, will be immediately
disqualified. The National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances can be found at
7 CFR §205.605-6.

Indoor Cannabis
• Any entry found to contain cannabis that is not sun-grown will be immediately
disqualified.



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