What Is Irradiated Cannabis? The Dirty Secret of Corporate Weed

nicholassenczysen
Dec 19, 2025
2 min read

Updated: 4 days ago

In the modern cannabis market, consumers are faced with a dizzying array of choices. Beneath the flashy packaging and clever strain names, a critical question often goes unasked: is this cannabis truly clean?

The unfortunate answer is often no.

One of the most pervasive yet least discussed practices in large-scale cannabis production is remediation, a sterile-sounding word for blasting moldy cannabis with radiation. This article pulls back the curtain on cannabis irradiation, explaining what it is, why it is done, and how to avoid smoking the ghosts of fungus past.

The Unseen Contaminant: When Good Crops Go Bad

Cannabis is an agricultural product. Like any plant, it is susceptible to pests and mold, especially in massive, dense-canopy environments favored by Multi-State Operators (MSOs).

One of the most common and dangerous molds is Aspergillus, a fungus that produces toxic compounds called mycotoxins. These mycotoxins are carcinogenic and can cause serious respiratory issues when inhaled.

When a small craft grower finds mold, they typically destroy the affected plants, absorbing the loss to protect their customers and reputation. For an industrial-scale MSO, destroying thousands of pounds of product is a financial catastrophe. Their business model is built on volume and efficiency, not artisanal quality control.

So what happens when an entire crop is contaminated?

Why Big Cannabis Chooses Radiation Over Quality Control

Instead of destroying moldy product, large corporations send it to be remediated.

This process exposes cannabis to gamma radiation (from Cobalt-60) or electron beams. The radiation kills living microbes, allowing the product to pass state-mandated tests that only screen for living microbial life.

The problem is what this process leaves behind.

Irradiation does not remove mold. It kills it. The necrotic carcass of the fungus remains bonded to the plant material. Worse, carcinogenic mycotoxins are not neutralized by radiation. They remain baked into the flower you grind and smoke.

Smoking Ghosts: Health Risks and Quality Degradation

When you smoke remediated cannabis, you inhale:

Sterilized mold spores: Dead microscopic fungal bodies
Mycotoxins: Heat-stable chemical waste from mold
Degraded terpenes: Radiation degrades aromatic compounds responsible for flavor and effect

This is why remediated flower often smells muted or hay-like.

Consumers pay premium prices for compromised product stripped of character and potentially harmful. MSOs rely on the assumption that passing minimum lab requirements is enough.