Delaware cannabis testing requirements

Required tests

• Potency
• Terpenes
• Pesticides
• Residual solvents
• Heavy metals
• Microbials
• Water activity
• Foreign matter
• Vitamin E acetate

ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation

Required within a set period. By statute, labs must achieve ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation from an ILAC-recognized body within their first licensing period (4 Del.C. §1331(19)). Testing facility licenses run 2 years (§1333), so the window is up to 24 months. The rule also requires labs to keep accreditation for at least one required analyte to stay licensed (5001 §6.6.13.7).

Notes

• Rules: 4 DE Admin. Code 5001, §11 (adopted August 2024). A February 2026 order (29 DE Reg. 787, effective March 2026) updated sample collection and sample counts, and added alternative microbial testing options that allow higher limits for some contaminants. The consolidated 2026 text was not reviewed.
• Flower, pre-rolls and kief: cannabinoid profile (THCV, CBD, CBC, delta-8 and delta-9 THC, CBG, CBN), foreign matter, microbials (aerobic bacteria, yeast, mold, total coliforms, E. coli), heavy metals (lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium), terpenes, pesticides and water activity (at most 0.6 aW).
• Concentrates add residual solvents (a list of 25 named solvents). Edibles add validation of the stated cannabinoid content. Vapes and other inhalables add MCT, PEG, vegetable glycerin, vitamin E acetate, diacetyl and squalene.
• Fail limits include foreign matter at 1% or more, lead 0.5 ppm, mercury 0.1 ppm, arsenic 0.2 ppm, cadmium 0.2 ppm, and any pesticide at 10 ppb or more.
• No mycotoxin test is listed in the mandatory panel (§11.2).
• OMC says medical and adult-use products are identical and meet the same production and testing standards. OMC now also runs the Medical Marijuana Program, formerly run by the Division of Public Health.
• Flower batches are capped at 10 lb, and sampling is done under OMC supervision.