Imbue Botanicals stands out by overseeing the manufacturing process from seed-to-bottle and its “Earth First” mentality, highlighted by sustainable packaging and proceed donations to animal rescue programs.
The brand offers a wide range of CBD options from oil, capsules, topical formulas, and even pet products. Imbue shines above its competitors because of its strong sense of corporate responsibility.
However, its products contain low CBD potencies at high price points. Imbue Botanicals’ brand identity caters to those who hold similar values and don’t mind spending a little extra cash for ethical products.
Mission/Charity5/5
Although Imbue Botanicals’ mission of supporting people’s health and protecting the environment is shared by many other health and wellness brands, what makes it stand out is concrete initiatives.
The brand offers a 30-40% discount for veterans and 40% discount for disabled and low-income individuals. In addition, Imbue donates to animal rescues and use recyclable packaging.
Hemp Source4/5
Imbue Botanicals uses hemp that’s grown in Colorado, the leading U.S. CBD industry state. This hemp is non-GMO, grown in the same fields as other crops used for human consumption, and undergoes third-party testing for contaminants and residual solvents to confirm its safety. However, the company lacks an organic certification.
Product Range3/5
With a wide range of products in CBD oil, capsule, pet, and topical categories, Imbue Botanicals gives its customers plenty of choices. However, many of these products have low CBD potencies. We’d like to see higher strength options, particularly for Imbue’s tinctures and topical formulations.
Innovation3/5
Imbue Botanicals demonstrates innovation by offering an extensive line of topical CBD products, including both beauty and relief-oriented preparations. By comparison, many brands don’t offer topicals, and if they do, only have one or two products.
We also enjoy the fact that Imbue has incorporated fully recyclable packaging for all products.
Safety5/5
Imbue Botanicals offers extensive third-party safety testing for every batch of its products. These tests not only confirm that its products contain safe THC levels, but are also free of residual solvents, heavy metals, and microbial contaminants.
Customer Service5/5
Imbue Botanicals has a 30-day full-refund return policy and covers return shipping for damaged, defective, or incorrect items. The website features a live chat program, a phone contact number, and an email to handle customer concerns.
Its high level of customer satisfaction is highlighted by holding an average 5/5-star rating on Trustpilot, an independent review company.
Imbue Botanicals is an American CBD company
grounded in the belief that “centuries-old
botanicals can have a profound impact in improving our lives, and those of our
pets.”
The company claims its products are sourced
from organic, non-GMO hemp grown in Colorado. Although Colorado is an excellent
hemp source, Imbue lacks organic USDA certification.
Where
Imbue Botanicals really shines is its “chain
of custody” — overseeing every step of manufacturing from seed to bottle.
It also stands out for its “Earth First” mentality. In order to reduce
waste, Imbue uses recyclable packaging. Moreover, Imbue Botanicals offers
discounts for the disabled, veterans, and low-income individuals.
Although
it’s not quite a top brand, Imbue Botanicals is a reputable CBD company. This is further demonstrated by an average 5/5 star rating from
customers on Trustpilot, an independent review website.
The
company’s goal is to improve the health of people and their pets through the
time-proven benefits of hemp-based botanicals. To
that end, Imbue creates products made in a way that is both close to nature and
protects the Earth’s natural environment.
Where Does Imbue Botanicals
Source Its Hemp?
Imbue Botanicals sources its hemp from
Colorado, the state with the most developed hemp industry in the U.S.
This hemp is non-GMO and grown in fields
used for crops intended for human consumption, as opposed to the textile
industry. There are more rigorous agricultural practices for crops for human
consumption. The company claims its hemp is organic but lacks USDA
certification to prove this.
After the hemp is harvested, Imbue
Botanicals uses ethanol to isolate CBD and other beneficial phytochemicals.
Alongside CO2 extraction, this method is considered an industry-leading
technique.
For people who prefer the convenience of
capsules, Imbue Botanicals offers full-spectrum CBD capsules in three
strengths: 5 mg, 10 mg, and 25 mg. Each bottle contains a total of 30 capsules
for a one-month supply.
The capsules are vegan and contain two
ingredients: full-spectrum hemp extract and hemp seed oil. Much like Imbue’s
CBD oil, these capsules are as close to nature as possible and don’t contain
any unnecessary additives or other ingredients.
Like many salves, this product is beeswax-based, which holds moisture and protects the skin. The formula includes full-spectrum hemp extract and ingredients that nourish the skin, including grapeseed oil infused with arnica and rosemary and peppermint essential oils.
Although Imbue doesn’t explain when you
should use its salve versus the lotion, generally speaking, salves are better
for issues on the surface of the skin, such as irritation or inflammation.
Meanwhile, the lotion may work better for
issues beyond the surface because it contains water, allowing it to penetrate
deeper. Having said that, both the lotion and salve suffer from a weak CBD
potency.
B) Imbue Botanicals Im-Bued Black Label Premium CBD Salve
The Embody CBD lotion can be applied
anywhere topically. Since it contains water, it may penetrate better into the
skin better than Imbue’s salve. However, it suffers from a weak CBD potency,
which is likely insufficient for relieving muscle and joint pain.
This product contains a long list of
ingredients commonly used in lotions, such as water, oil, and emulsifying
agents. Aside from that, it contains the same ingredients as Imbue’s salve.
D) Imbue Botanicals Lifted by Em-Body Premium CBD Facial Cream
Unlike Imbue’s other topical products, the
Lifted Facial Cream is meant to be used as a beauty product.
To that end, the cream contains
full-spectrum hemp extract alongside multiple ingredients used to support
healthy, vibrant-looking skin, including vitamin E, rosemary oil, mint oil, and
infused arnica oil.
Much like the other topicals from Imbue,
however, this cream has a low CBD potency.
The Lifted CBD Eye Cream is designed for
cosmetic rather than therapeutic use. Imbue recommends using it under the eyes
to revitalize the skin and reduce inflammation, although the CBD potency is
rather weak for these uses.
Like the facial cream, this eye cream
contains vitamin E and rosemary oil. However, it also contains three unique
ingredients: lavender, German chamomile, and cypress oil.
G) Imbue Botanicals En-Hanced by Em-Body Premium CBD Massage Oil
Last but not least, Imbue Botanicals offers
a CBD-infused massage oil. As the name implies, this product is designed for
massaging into the skin. Since CBD has pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory
effects, it works quite well as a massage oil ingredient. Unfortunately, like
with Imbue’s other topicals, this oil’s CBD potency is too weak to provide
these benefits.
This product contains full-spectrum hemp extract, the terpene D-limonene, and several herbal oils, such as almond, jojoba, and apricot. It comes in a 120 mL (4 oz) bottle with 200 mg of CBD and has two varieties:
C) Imbue Botanicals For Pets Cattle Comfort Premium CBD Salve
What Does Imbue Botanicals
Do Well?
1. Seed-To-Bottle Approach To Business
Imbue Botanicals oversees every step of the
manufacturing process, starting from hemp seeds in what it calls “chain
of custody.” This includes growing hemp is Colorado fields set aside
for food crops, processing it in company-owned facilities, and then formulating
it into Imbue’s products.
2. Extensive Third-Party Testing
Furthermore, while many CBD brands offer
third-party testing, Imbue Botanicals takes this to the next level by testing not just the potency
of their products, but also residual solvents, heavy metals, and microbial
contaminants. Moreover, the company provides batch testing to ensure
consistency.
3. Corporate Responsibility
Imbue
Botanicals also demonstrates corporate responsibility. The company donates to animal shelters, provide discounts to the
disabled, veterans, and low-income individuals, and use Earth-friendly,
recyclable packaging. Also, the company provides educational resources on CBD
on its website and social media channels. These initiatives prove that Imbue
Botanicals is not just trying to cash in on the popularity of CBD.
Where Could Imbue
Botanicals Improve?
1. Price
Without a doubt, the major weakness of
Imbue Botanicals is its high prices. The company’s products easily cost 2-3
times more than leading CBD brands, and some of its topical preparations have
especially high prices per mg of CBD.
Although some of this cost is explained by
the use of premium ingredients such as hemp seed oil instead of MCT oil, this
isn’t enough to justify Imbue’s expensive prices.
2. ™Low CBD Potency
Another major issue is that many of Imbue
Botanicals’ products contain too little CBD. For example, the company’s most
potent CBD tincture contains only 16.67 mg CBD per mL, which isn’t enough for
many people.
Meanwhile, all of Imbue’s topical products
have such low CBD potencies that we doubt they offer much benefit, especially
for pain and muscle discomfort, the main reason people turn to topical CBD
preparations.
Safety and Third-Party
Testing
Imbue Botanicals provides extensive
third-party lab testing of its products. While most brands only test for
potency — the amount of CBD and other cannabinoids present in a product — Imbue
also orders tests for residual solvents, heavy metals, and microbial
contaminants.
Also, the company tests every batch of its
products to maintain consistency. All of the test results are readily available
on Imbue Botanicals’ website.
Imbue Botanicals’ Shipping and
Return Policy
Imbue Botanicals ships to all 50 American
States with USPS. The company offers a 30-day full-refund return policy and
covers return shipping for damaged, defective, or incorrect items. You can also
return a product for a full refund if you’re not fully satisfied.
Final Verdict: An Ethical,
Albeit Expensive Brand
Overall,
we recommend Imbue Botanicals because it’s a reputable CBD brand that
demonstrates integrity and transparency. Its
products are made with care and undergo extensive third-party testing.
Moreover, Imbue Botanicals has a strong
commitment to supporting the health of people, their pets, and the natural
environment through their charitable work, discounts, Earth-friendly packaging,
and CBD education resources.
Having
said that, Imbue Botanicals suffers from two significant issues: high prices
and products with low CBD potencies. As such, we
don’t consider it a top-tier brand such as the likes of Lazarus Naturals.