Case Study

Background: As a Quality Assurance Inspector it is your responsibility to review trends of environmental temperature and humidity monitoring of the cultivation and manufacturing rooms of the Licensed Producer you are working for. Also you are to highlight any concerns that may have a potential impact on the quality of the product and/or are not meeting the defined limits that are indicated in the Standard Operating Procedure(s) and on the environmental monitoring logs. You are also responsible to perform an investigation if there are any areas of concern.

Problem Statement: The cultivation manager came to you today because he/she has noticed that the latest lot of cannabis that has been drying in the drying room has been taking close to 3 weeks to dry and the results are still not within the moisture acceptance criteria limits as defined by daily measures with the moisture analyser. You are asked to investigate.

What you know

Evidence

According to your organizations standard operating procedures the optimal drying temperature is 17 20 oC and relative humidity is 50 60 %. Refer to the Monthly Environmental Conditions Log of the Drying Room below for the readings over the last three weeks.

Part of the process for drying cannabis is to take moisture readings throughout to determine when the product is ready for the next step in the process. Your organization has determined the moisture acceptance criteria to be 10 15%. When this limit is reached the cannabis can then move onto trimming. The drying process on average takes 10 - 14 days. Refer to the Monthly Environmental Conditions Log of the Drying Room below for the readings over the last three weeks.

Questions 1. Prepare a one-page audit plan in order to determine the potential root cause of the extended drying time (5 marks)

2. Decide if you would use a fish-bone or 5 Whys as a tool to determine the root cause. Why would you use one or the other? (250 words maximum) (refer to additional references as appropriate) (5 marks)

3. Reviewing the data indicate area(s) of concern (if any). Explain why or why not and if there is any potential impact to product quality if not resolved. Include any additional research and reference as appropriate (750 words maximum) (10 marks)

4 marks will automatically be given for creativity, spelling, grammar, references and overall presentation. Marks will be deducted if there is a significant lack in overall presentation style

Rationale This assessment provides students with an opportunity to utilize the audit planning and root cause analysis tools to problem solve a potential concern of product quality, including data review.

This assessment supports the following learning outcomes:

Interpret chemical, environmental, and physiological data to assess crop health and quality and adapt growth conditions and pest management strategies.

Support continuous quality improvement of cannabis production through reinforcement of product quality for safe consumer use, hazard prevention programs, and sanitization and security programs for various product types