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Consumer protection does not end when a cannabis product reaches the shelf.

For medical cannabis patients, being able to legally purchase a product was only the first step toward safe access. As states built medical cannabis programs, they also had to create product testing requirements, laboratory standards, labeling rules, licensing systems, recalls, inspections, and other consumer protections largely from scratch. That was an enormous undertaking. Regulators, laboratories, businesses, scientists, patients, advocates, and policymakers all played a role in developing systems intended to give patients greater confidence in the products they were purchasing.

Regulations are not always reflected in the marketplace. A product can have a label, a Certificate of Analysis, and a place on the shelf, but patients still need confidence that the information is accurate, the required testing was meaningful, contaminants were detected when present, recalls reach the people who need them, and problems in the system are identified and corrected. That is where independent marketplace surveillance becomes an important part of cannabis safety.

The Market Watch Award recognizes organizations and initiatives that independently examine what patients and consumers encounter in the cannabis marketplace. Through product testing, data analysis, marketplace surveillance, labeling review, consumer education, and public accountability, this work can identify problems that might otherwise go unnoticed and turn those findings into stronger consumer protections.

The 2026 nominees are Patients for Safe Access of Oklahoma and the Institute of Cannabis Science. Learn more about the Market Watch Award!

MEET THE MARKET WATCH NOMINEES!

Patients for Safe Access of Oklahoma

Patients for Safe Access of Oklahoma puts patients directly into the consumer protection process by independently testing cannabis and hemp products that raise concerns within the patient community. Their work starts with what patients are actually encountering in the marketplace and follows those concerns into laboratory testing, public education, and policy discussions. By examining issues such as contamination, inaccurate labeling, potency, and testing practices, they help turn patient experiences into information that can be investigated and acted upon.

Their approach reflects something medical cannabis patients have understood from the beginning: patients are often the first people to recognize when a system that looks good on paper is not working as intended.

Institute of Cannabis Science

The Institute of Cannabis Science brings independent scientific scrutiny to cannabis products, laboratory testing, Certificates of Analysis, labeling, contaminants, regulatory data, and marketplace claims. Its work explores whether cannabis products and the systems designed to oversee them are performing the way patients and consumers have been promised.

By testing products obtained from the marketplace, examining regulatory and laboratory data, and making scientific information available to the public, the Institute helps create another layer of accountability between the rules governing cannabis and the products people actually purchase.

From Rules on Paper to Products on Shelves

Cannabis product safety requires strong regulations, competent laboratories, responsible businesses, effective regulators, and clear information for patients and consumers. But even well-designed systems need ways to identify weaknesses once they are operating in the real world. Independent marketplace surveillance can help fill that gap.

It can reveal patterns that may not be visible from individual complaints. It can test whether product claims match what is actually in a package. It can identify questions about laboratory practices, labeling, contaminants, recalls, and enforcement. Just as importantly, it can give regulators and responsible businesses information they can use to strengthen the system.

This kind of accountability should not be viewed as an attack on regulated cannabis markets. It is part of making those markets worthy of patients' and the public's trust. For medical cannabis patients, that trust has always been especially important. Patients depend on regulations when deciding which products to use to manage serious or chronic health conditions. Many of these patients take other medications or face health vulnerabilities that make accurate information and product quality critical.

The nominees for the 2026 Market Watch Award approach consumer protection from different directions. Patients for Safe Access of Oklahoma starts with patients' experiences and concerns in the marketplace and uses independent testing to investigate what they find. The Institute of Cannabis Science applies independent scientific analysis to products, testing systems, regulatory data, and marketplace claims.

Together, their work reflects an important principle of cannabis safety: trust should be earned through transparency, verification, and accountability.

Cast your vote for the 2026 Market Watch Award through October 25.