CBD is typically extracted using CO2, butane, propane or other gases compressed to become a solvent. Traditional extraction centers around a hydrocarbon-based solvent heated to dissolve cannabinoids, activating their effects.

CO2 can produce safe extracts for consumption without any risk of fire, making it a popular choice amongst extraction companies. However, the end result is a product with sour, bitter, and overall unpleasant tastes. The process is rather slow, and the equipment necessary for CO2 extraction is expensive.

Revolutionary hot air extraction

Vapor Distilled, the extraction process company for RAD Soap Co., uses a method unlike any other extractors in the business. Rather than follow traditional methods, which tend to take between 45 minutes and several hours, Vapor Distilled uses hot air to activate cannabinoids in less than two seconds.

If you’ve ever used a personal vaporizer, you’ve experienced the process of pushing heated air through plant matter. This same idea is applied large-scale with their extraction methods, and the result is a good tasting, uncompromised oil.

They use large, commercial-sized continuous feed machines filled with a fast stream of hot air inside. The hopper is filled with cannabis and the auger at the bottom feeds powdered material into the airstream to begin distilling out the cannabinoids. The airstream filters the plant material from the cannabis vapor produced and then condenses the vapor into a concentrate.

Better terpene profiles and more therapeutic effects

Remember, this whole process takes a total of two seconds. The founder and CEO of Vapor Distilled, Russell Thomas, compared the process to flash pasteurization of milk. It happens so fast that the terpenes are left undamaged, creating a more therapeutic oil. It’s common for terpenes to be destroyed during extraction and then added back in later, but hot air extraction keeps them in place from the start.

The company grinds their cannabis, exposing more of the terpenes to extraction. Then, they keep them intact throughout the short process without damaging them. The end result is oil without the unpleasant tastes common from CO2 extractions. Instead, their oil is described as nutty with hints of molasses. Vapor Distilled’s extraction process also produces significantly less waste than other extractions, as there is no solvent that needs to be replaced with each extraction.