Independent third-party analysis

Third-party analysis means testing performed by a laboratory with no commercial interest in the outcome. The distinction from in-house testing is not about competence — an in-house laboratory may be excellent — but about whether an external check exists at all.

Accreditation has a scope

Accreditation is granted for specified methods within a defined scope, not to a laboratory in general. The useful question is therefore never whether a laboratory is accredited, but whether its published accreditation schedule covers the specific test being relied on. Those schedules are published and can be inspected directly by anyone.

Checking a third-party result

1. Identify the testing laboratory by name, not by description.
2. Find its accreditation schedule and confirm the relevant method appears within scope.
3. Confirm the batch identifier on the report matches the material.
4. Confirm who commissioned the testing and who selected the sample, since sample selection can be as consequential as the analysis.