FECO

FECO (Full Extract Cannabis Oil) is a full-spectrum, decarboxylated, whole-plant cannabis oil produced using a food-grade solvent — almost always ethanol, occasionally CO₂ — and intended primarily for oral or sublingual consumption rather than for smoking or dabbing. The standard ethanol-based protocol decarboxylates biomass at approximately 110°C (230°F) for 30 minutes, soaks the material in high-proof food-grade ethanol (190–200 proof, ≥95%) at freezer temperatures to minimize chlorophyll and wax pickup, filters the plant material out, and recovers the ethanol using a rotovap or low-temperature vacuum oven. Further refinement is intentionally skipped to preserve the full plant profile. FECO differs from RSO in four important ways. The original solvent is food-grade ethanol, not naphtha or IPA; solvent recovery runs at lower temperatures, preserving more terpenes; the product is intended for oral or sublingual use and therefore must be food-safe; and color runs amber to dark, generally cleaner than RSO, with typical potency 50–70% THC. Regulatory residual ethanol limits under USP <467> and most state programs are 5,000 ppm for oral products; California imposes 1,000 ppm for inhaled products and 5,000 ppm for non-inhaled, and the FDA classifies ethanol as a Class 3 solvent. ⚠️ FECO is widely marketed with implicit cancer-therapy claims inherited from RSO lore. Clinical evidence supports symptom relief — pain, chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV), and MS-related spasticity, per the 2017 National Academies report — but not cancer cure. Dispensary labeling frequently conflates the two terms, selling ethanol-made product as "RSO" or naphtha/IPA-spec product as "FECO," in ways that obscure the original distinction. → See also: RSO, Ethanol extraction, Concentrate