Jon StojanArcanna Analytics is setting a new standard in cannabis testing with an innovative system designed to encourage more frequent product testing without the financial burden that has long stifled smaller producers. By introducing a flat-rate, unlimited testing model alongside its tiered model, it reduces the cost while creating better transparency and quality assurance for its clients. This novel approach enables cannabis cultivators, processors, and dispensaries to elevate their products and businesses, strengthening the industry as a whole.
Arcanna Analytics
Research has found that one of the leading reasons for cannabis use is anxiety reduction, along with pain and depression management. Even though cannabis legalization gains momentum across the U.S., both for medical and recreational use, the industry still struggles with a fundamental issue: trust. Despite the continuous acceptance of cannabis, consumers, regulators, and medical professionals remain wary due to inconsistencies in product quality, potency, and safety.
The medical sector requires precision, and this is pushed even further for a product like cannabis. Patients rely on accurate potency levels to ensure they receive the correct dosage. Testing for pesticides, heavy metals, and residual solvents throughout the life cycle of the plant is not only critical to consumer safety but streamlines the process for the manufacturers themselves. However, high testing costs and industry inefficiencies have created an environment where corner-cutting is prevalent, which often leads to inaccurate or misleading results.
This is because the industry has been rocked by scandals and lawsuits in major markets like the recent news coming out of New York, where testing lab fraud has led to misreported potency levels and contaminants in products. Given that many have started being dependent on cannabis for medical relief, ensuring quality and accuracy has become a public health imperative. Kishan Garlapati, owner of Arcanna Analytics, further states, “Testing labs have a responsibility to be transparent. The whole reason they exist is to ensure product safety and quality. We couldn’t just be another part of the problem—we needed to create a real solution.”
Unlike traditional testing, which charges per sample, Arcanna’s model removes the hesitation that often comes with the high cost of compliance testing. It allows businesses to conduct multiple tests on different parts of a plant to account for natural variations in potency. They test throughout the manufacturing process to ensure accurate formulations and proper dosing. The company monitors contaminants like pesticides and heavy metals more frequently, preventing unsafe products from reaching consumers.
“The more samples you test, the better the data you get,” Garlapati affirms. “With our approach, businesses no longer have to choose between financial viability and safety. They can consistently refine their products, maintain compliance, and build trust with their consumers.” The company, established in 2017, operates as a third-party, DEA-certified, and ISO 17025-accredited lab, ensuring compliance with the highest scientific standards.
According to the Arcanna founder, widespread adoption of frequent and affordable testing could transform public perception of cannabis, especially in the medical space. “Right now, some consumers hesitate to use cannabis because they don’t know if what they’re getting is safe. If we can provide more and more testing, providing verifiable, accurate data on every product, it will encourage trust from the public,” he assures.
While Arcanna Analytics has made a substantial impact in Arkansas, the company recognizes that its influence is currently limited by state boundaries. However, it has ambitious plans to expand into other states, bringing its innovative model to a larger market.
“The impact of a service like this is inevitable,” Garlapati concludes. “But that impact is only as strong as the reach we have. That’s why expansion is a key part of our vision. By bringing this model to more states, we can push the industry toward a future where transparency and quality are the gold standard, not the exception.”