Cannabis Remediation in Colombia: Keeping Your Exports within Pharmacopoeia Scope

Meeting Global Standards

The European Union’s 27 countries represent one of the largest potential markets, with more than 350 million people. Leveraging this market by exporting cannabis to the EU involves strict compliance with agricultural and manufacturing standards.

European regulators apply pharmaceutical-level standards to their cannabis market, which set tight limits on yeast, mold, and bacteria. In practice, every crop must pass strict safety tests before it can reach patients. Producers have to maintain very low microbial counts and adhere to the EU’s Good Agricultural and Collecting Practices (GACP) and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), as well as to individual country requirements. For example, in Germany, each cannabis strain treated by ionizing radiation requires a separate registration, a costly obstacle our Radio Frequency (RF) approach avoids.

The EU does not have a single cannabis monograph, so growers must adapt broad pharma microbiology requirements. Colombian producers planning to enter the EU market need to build these requirements into their operations from the beginning, including thorough testing and reliable records.

Microbes: A Hidden Risk

Mold, yeast, and other pathogens are serious risks in cannabis production, especially in warm and humid climates like Colombia’s. The same conditions that support strong plant growth also encourage mold. Mold can develop during drying or storage, and even properly dried flower can become contaminated if humidity changes.

Regulators test for total yeast and mold (TYMC), total bacteria (TAMC), and pathogens such as Aspergillus or Salmonella. If a batch exceeds limits, it must be reworked or destroyed, which cuts into profits. Contaminated cannabis might have to be converted into extract products, which usually hold less value. We’ve seen many producers forced to shift product to lower-value extracts, a result that effective remediation can help avoid.

Radio Frequency Remediation

Ziel uses Radio Frequency technology to support safe and effective cannabis remediation. RF energy is non-ionizing, which means it does not change the chemical structure of the plant. Instead, RF waves oscillate water molecules within the flower, creating volumetric heating that kills mold and bacteria while maintaining product quality. Our RF system can reduce yeast and mold counts by over 99.9%, allowing producers to save harvests and avoid major losses. Unlike traditional, ionizing methods like X-ray or E-Beam, RF treatment is non-ionizing and does not require special labeling or licensing.

Safe, Organic Treatment

We are committed to providing a safe and organic process. Ziel’s machines require only a food-grade nylon bag and minimal electricity per cycle, producing no chemical residues or impact on the plant’s sensory qualities. The RFX and APEX 7 can run continuously with no required downtime, making them practical solutions for high-volume producers.