How to Read a Certificate of Analysis (COA)
A Certificate of Analysis is the most useful document in the botanical industry and the one customers open least often. That is understandable — the typical COA is a dense PDF full of acronyms, method codes, and numbers in scientific notation. But you do not need a chemistry background to use one. You need to know which four or five fields to check and what a bad report looks like.
This guide walks through a COA section by section, explains what identity, potency, and contaminant testing mean, and lists the red flags that should stop a purchase. Our own reports are on the COA page if you want to follow along with a real document.
What a COA is
A Certificate of Analysis is a laboratory report documenting what a specific batch was tested for and what the testing found. The critical word is specific. A COA is not a certificate about a brand, a product line, or a company. It applies to one production batch — one lot, made at one time — and is only meaningful in relation to that batch.
This is why "we're third-party tested" as a standalone homepage claim means almost nothing. Tested when? Which batch? By whom? A brand that tested one batch in 2023 can technically say that sentence forever. A brand publishing a current, batch-matched report for the product you are about to buy is telling you something verifiable.
The other word that matters is third-party: an independent facility with no ownership relationship to the brand or manufacturer. In-house testing may be perfectly competent, but it lacks the structural independence that makes a report worth something to a buyer.
The header block: where most red flags live
The top section of a COA carries the identifying information, and it is where a fake or repurposed report usually falls apart. These are the fields to check.
| Field | What it should show | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Laboratory name and address | A named, physically located facility | The lab should be searchable and real. A logo with no name is not a lab. |
| Accreditation | ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation, usually with an accrediting body and certificate number | This is the international standard for testing-laboratory competence. Its presence is meaningful; its absence is a question. |
| Client / brand | The company that submitted the sample | Should match the brand on the package. |
| Sample or product name | The specific product, ideally with strength and format | Should match your package — not a similar product from the same brand. |
| Batch / lot number | A unique batch identifier | Must match the batch printed on your package. This is the single most important match. |
| Dates | Date received, date tested, date reported | Should be recent relative to the product's manufacture. A years-old report on a current package is a problem. |
| Sample ID | The lab's own internal tracking number | Its presence indicates a real chain of custody. |
| Authorized signature | A named lab director or approving analyst | Real reports are signed or electronically approved by a named person. |
Identity testing: is it the right plant?
Identity testing confirms that the material in the package is the species the label says it is. For the products we carry, that means confirming the material is Uncaria tomentosa.
This matters more than it sounds. As we cover on our Cat's Claw reference page, several unrelated plants share the common name "cat's claw," as does the related Amazonian species Uncaria guianensis. Milled and powdered botanical material all looks broadly alike, so identity has to be established analytically rather than visually.
Labs do this with methods such as HPLC fingerprinting, which compares the sample's chromatographic pattern to a reference, and increasingly with DNA-based methods. You do not need to evaluate the method — only to see that an identity test was performed and that it confirms the species named on your label.
Potency testing: how much is actually in it?
Potency, sometimes labeled assay or quantitation, measures how much of a specified constituent or marker compound is present — on a Cat's Claw COA, typically alkaloid content reported as a percentage or as milligrams per serving.
The purpose is verification: a label states an amount, and the test either confirms it or does not. Results usually come with a specification range, and a result inside that range is what you want to see. A potency number describes composition only. It is not a statement about what the product does, and nobody should present it as one.
Contaminant panels: what shouldn't be in there
Contaminant testing takes up most of a COA's page count and has the most direct bearing on safety. Four panels are standard for a botanical product.
| Panel | What is screened | Why it applies to bark and root botanicals |
|---|---|---|
| Heavy metals | Lead, cadmium, arsenic, mercury — the standard four | Plants absorb metals present in their soil. Root and bark material warrants particular attention. |
| Microbials | Total aerobic plate count, yeast and mold, E. coli, Salmonella, sometimes S. aureus | Material harvested and dried in humid tropical conditions carries real microbial risk. |
| Pesticides | A multi-residue screen against established tolerances | Verifies agricultural chemical residues fall within limits. |
| Residual solvents | Ethanol and other solvents used in extraction | Applies to extracts specifically, confirming solvent was adequately removed. |
Reading the results column
A handful of conventions cover nearly everything you will see:
- ND — Not Detected. The analyte was not found at or above the method's detection limit.
— below the Limit of Quantitation. Possibly present in a trace amount, but below the level the method can measure reliably. - LOD / LOQ — Limit of Detection and Limit of Quantitation. The smallest amount the method can detect at all, and the smallest it can measure with confidence.
- Specification, Limit, or Action Level — the threshold the result is compared against. A result is only interpretable against its limit; a number alone means nothing.
- PASS / FAIL — the lab's determination against that specification.
- ppm / ppb / mg/kg / µg/kg — units. Parts per million equals mg/kg; parts per billion equals µg/kg.
The most common mistake is reacting to a raw number without looking at the limit next to it. A trace heavy-metal detection well under an established limit is an ordinary result for a plant product; the limit column is what gives the number meaning.
Matching a COA to the product in your hand
- Find the batch or lot number on your package — usually near the expiration date, on the bottom panel, or on a printed sticker.
- Open the brand's COA library and locate the report for that exact batch. Many brands also print a QR code that links directly to it.
- Confirm the batch number on the report is identical to the one on your package. Not similar. Identical.
- Confirm the product name and strength on the report match your package, including format and serving size.
- Check the test dates and confirm they are plausible for the product's manufacture date.
- Confirm the lab is named, is independent of the brand, and shows accreditation.
- Scan the results for any FAIL, and confirm identity, potency, and contaminant panels are all present.
If a brand cannot produce a report for your batch and offers a different one instead, notice that. Batch-level testing is the entire point.
Red flags
- No batch or lot number. A report without one cannot be tied to anything you own. This is the most serious flag on the list.
- No lab name, or a lab that does not exist. Search the name. A real lab has a real footprint.
- Product name that doesn't match your package. A COA for the 50mg version is not a COA for the 100mg version.
- An old or expired report. A report from years ago on a recently manufactured product is not evidence about that product.
- Missing panels. A potency-only report tells you nothing about heavy metals or microbials. Silence on a panel is not a passing result.
- An image instead of a document. A cropped screenshot with the header cut off is a document with the accountability removed.
- No signature or approving analyst. Accredited labs sign their work.
- Visible editing. Mismatched fonts, misaligned text, or inconsistent formatting within a table are signs a PDF has been altered.
- "COA available on request" that never arrives. If a seller will not send the report, the answer is already there.
- Results with no limits column. Numbers without specifications are unfalsifiable by design.
Testing for what isn't there
COAs can also document absence, which matters when a category sits near others on the shelf. The products we carry contain no kratom, no mitragynine, and no 7-OH, and testing that confirms non-detection is a meaningful part of a report — more so given the DEA's July 2026 Notices of Intent regarding 7-hydroxymitragynine, covered in our article on the scheduling action. Legality of any particular product depends on its formulation and applicable state law,* and a batch-matched COA is what establishes contents.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a COA and a lab test?
A COA is the formal report documenting one or more tests performed on a defined batch, issued by the laboratory with identifying information, methods, results, specifications, and an authorized signature. A screenshot of a single number is not a COA.
What does ISO/IEC 17025 mean?
It is the international standard for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories. Accreditation means an independent accrediting body has assessed the lab's methods, equipment, and personnel against that standard. It does not tell you the results are good — it tells you the testing was performed competently.
Should every batch have its own COA?
Yes. Botanical raw material varies between harvests and lots, which is the reason batch testing exists. A brand publishing one report for all products is not doing batch testing.
What does "Not Detected" really mean?
It means the analyte was not found at or above the method's limit of detection. It is not a philosophical claim of absolute zero — every analytical method has a floor. A good report states the detection limit so you know what the floor was.
Where do I find your COAs?
On our COA page, organized by product and batch. Match the batch number on your package to the report. If you cannot find yours, contact us with the batch number and we will send it — and if we ever cannot, do not buy from us. The lineup itself is in the Cat's Claw collection.
*Statements marked with an asterisk have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Legality of any given product depends on its specific formulation and on applicable federal, state, and local law.
These statements have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. For adults 21+. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before use.