Publication date: December 14, 2023
Categories: Education
The evolution of cannabis processing has led to a game-changer: fresh frozen cannabis. Forget the slow-paced grind of drying and curing buds for weeks—this method hits the brakes on time, freezing the harvest immediately to lock in flavor, aroma, and potency. It’s the secret ingredient behind the high demand concentrates that have taken the industry by storm, from live resin to live rosin.
What’s the Deal with Fresh Frozen?
Fresh frozen cannabis is exactly what it sounds like—harvested plants frozen on the spot, at temperatures plunging as low as -40°F. This isn't just some over-the-top cool factor. Freezing the plants right away ensures the trichomes—the precious little pockets of cannabinoids and terpenes—remain intact. Terpenes, the aromatic compounds that give cannabis its signature scent and taste, are the essence of what makes fresh frozen a whole different beast compared to the time-consuming dry cure method. Freezing locks them in, where traditional drying slowly chips away at them like a stubborn leak in a dam.
Why Skip the Cure?
Old-school drying and curing are all about control—control over moisture levels, control over the chemical evolution of cannabis. But in that process, some vital flavors and scents vanish, and unwanted plant material creeps into the mix. Freezing? That’s the instant preservation of peak freshness, straight from the plant to the freezer, halting degradation in its tracks. No time wasted, no flavor lost.
High Concentration: The Magic of Fresh Frozen Extracts
The real magic happens when fresh frozen cannabis meets extraction. Think live resin and live rosin—two heavy-hitters in the concentrate world. Live resin, made using hydrocarbon methods (like butane or propane), extracts the best of what the plant has to offer in a beautifully potent mix. On the other hand, live rosin takes the solvent-free approach—ice water and heat pressing its way into terpene-rich excellence. Both methods yield concentrates that hit the mark with the same flavor and scent profile as the plant, pure and untouched by traditional drying.
The Growing Demand
In the fast-evolving cannabis industry, fresh frozen concentrates are more than just a trend—they’re a revolution. As consumers crave products that preserve the plant’s raw essence, fresh frozen cannabis has moved to the front of the line. The buzz surrounding its preservation of terpenes and minimal processing speaks volumes in a market that’s no longer content with the status quo.
Fresh frozen cannabis is a wave that’s making a lasting impression on the processing landscape. By bypassing the traditional cure process and freezing the plant at its peak, it's creating a new benchmark in the world of concentrates, one that’s here to stay.
