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Nearly 20% of marijuana products in California have failed efficacy and purity tests since the state began requiring controls on July 1st.
The tests were particularly difficult on biscuits, sweets and cannabis-based dyes: about a third were stuck in store shelves.
According to data provided to the Associated Press by the state's Office of Cannabis Control, state-approved testing companies find unacceptable levels of pesticides, solvents, and bacteria, including E. coli and salmonella.
In the first two months, nearly 11,000 samples were tested and nearly 2,000 failed. In some cases, the product must be destroyed. But many involve labeling problems that can be corrected. For example, a marijuana bud tested to show a different potency than indicated on the label can be re-labeled and sold with the correct specifications.
For the state, the rigorous testing program does largely for what it was designed: identify marijuana buds, concentrates, snack foods and other products that are somehow contaminated and unsuitable for eating or smoking.
"The statewide mandatory tests are new and it will take time for everything to go well, but overall we are pleased with the progress," said the spokesperson for the State Control Office. cannabis, Alex Traverso.
But as regulators look to overhaul the rules governing the country's largest legal pot economy, they face pressures to revisit testing requirements that are alternatively described as going too far, not far enough, or too expensive a burden .
The California Growers Association, an industry group, is among those who fear that the state is forcing producers and manufacturers to reach a target too low when they evaluate the levels of THC, the psychoactive chemical at the same time. Origin of marijuana.
The rules require that the concentration of THC be less than 10% of what is advertised on a product label. The company's executives say some products are rejected after being taken out of the margin in small amounts.
The California Cannabis Manufacturers Association, another industry group, insists that changes allow companies to challenge the results of lab tests.
"Even if the lab admits that it made a mistake, there is no way to change those results," said Bryce Berryessa, TreeHouse County Board Member in Santa Cruz County and President of La Vida Verde. . .
"The labs are not perfect, mistakes are made," he said.
At a public hearing last month, the Cannalysis analytics company, based in Santa Ana, urged regulators to expand their rules to include a test used in the food and pharmaceutical industries to detect a large number of molds and molds. potentially harmful yeasts. covered in state directives.
The company has seen examples of mold on cannabis, but the sample has successfully passed state tests.
Swetha Kaul, the chief scientist of the company that sits on the board of directors of the California Cannabis Industry Association, said in an interview that the state should "create a larger network to catch things."
By limiting the necessary examination to a few species of mold, the state "essentially creates a loophole where all other species can survive," she said.
California started large legal sales on January 1 and gave companies six months to sell their stocks of marijuana, oils and edible products produced without strict testing requirements.
The rules require that all cannabis-based products clear a range of laboratory tests before reaching consumers, ensuring that THC is evenly distributed in chocolate bars and does not contaminate buds.
From July 1 to August 29, the laboratories tested 10,695 lots of products and 1,904 were rejected, a failure rate of about 18%.
Labeling claims, such as THC content, accounted for 65% of failures, or 1,279 tests.
Here is how the rule works: If a bottled juice drink indicated on the label 25% apple juice, the testers should find that the concentration in the juice was less than 10% of that mark. It's the same with cannabis.
Next: Approximately 400 batches have been marked for unacceptable pesticide levels. Impurities such as bacteria and molds caused 114 releases.
Ninety percent of the tested buds were sent to the stores, suggesting an essentially clean market for legal producers. The rejection rate was twice that of the concentrates: 20% of the oils and "waxes" tested did not make the difference. In a statement, the California Department of Public Health declared cannabis product attributed to molds or bacteria, although three complaints were submitted anonymously and unverifiable.
"Public health and public safety are absolutely essential," said Joe Devlin of the City of Sacramento. "The industry will eventually have to adapt to make sure the products are safe for citizens' consumption."
The test debate is not just about laboratory procedures or allowable levels of pesticides. All of this comes at a cost, which companies say puts a strain on their budgets.
"The tests are currently expensive, slow and inconsistent," the producers' association said in a recent letter.
Testing for a small outdoor marijuana farm can typically range from $ 5,000 to $ 10,000 in California. There have been similar complaints in Colorado, a pot-friendly, where farmers are facing new mandatory pesticide testing.
While California now has the largest legal market in the country, a huge black market still exists. Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore highlighted the risk of buying on the illegal market last week, warning consumers that the price of money saved "could be their life".
He stated that unlicensed stores are known to tie their pot with fentanyl and other narcotics. In an illegal store, "we do not know what they are actually buying," Moore said.
When tests began on July 1, it also resulted in a shortage of marijuana in some stores, such as All About Wellness in Midtown.
"It has improved a lot since then. There is a limited amount of products, but things improve a lot, "said Tommy Pawloski, store manager.
Pawloski said it was still difficult for the store to obtain cannabis and concentrated flowers due to delays in state licensing testing facilities.
"I know at least most cannabis labs, at least eight to ten days," he said.
Traverso said that there are now 34 accredited testing centers in the state, up from 31 in early July.
He said new regulations should be in place by the first week of December and that a second public comment period may be needed this fall depending on the number of proposed changes.
An initial period of public comment generated 3,000 responses.
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