 THCa denigration, it does occur as part of the natural life cycle of cannabis. However, like many phytocannabinoids, it exists in trace amounts in unmanipulated cannabis plants.
In the commercial market, producers employ chemists to synthesize the compound through hydrogenation, a process used to break crude oil into diesel, gasoline, and jet fuel in the petrol industry. To create HHC, hydrogenation machines add hydrogen atoms to THC isomers, the most famous being delta-9-THC. Here is the greatest danger of HHC, as large-scale production poses a risk of explosion. Safe practices ensure that such an event does not occur, such as grounding machinery, so that sparks do not escape into the material.
Why the Explosive Popularity of the Compound?
The most prominent reason is marketing. These lab-produced cannabinoids made from CBD promise a "legal high" in states where regulated cannabis isn't available. In a non-scientific, social media poll, the most common answer to why people consume these products is simply because it's legal. By default, most consumers believe that these legal products are safe and thoroughly tested.
In other words, by taking advantage of the consumer's lack of education regarding these products, companies are capitalizing on America's demand to get high in places where the cannabis plant isn't yet legal. Additionally, many of these products continue to proliferate false narratives and misinformation by marketing these products as "All-Natural" and "Hemp-Derived," although they are anything but.
As CBD falls in price, cultivators need something to do with their legal hemp stores. Originally, the most popular option was to convert their CBD-rich flower into Delta-8-THC extract as the compound was in demand and debatably legal. Now that many markets are cracking down on that compound, HHC is another way to turn rotting hemp into valuable material. While this gives many farmers a lucky break, a legal backlash is looming. Chemists will continue to create alternative cannabinoids that bypass legislat