(C) Florida Phoenix This story was originally published by Florida Phoenix and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . As more states legalize pot, their uneven safety rules can pose a risk [1] ['Amanda Hernández', 'More From Author', '- July'] Date: 2023-07-11 Amid the growing acceptance and legalization of cannabis use across the country, a concerning reality has emerged: The state-by-state patchwork of safety regulations can leave marijuana consumers wandering through a haze of uncertainty, exposing them to potential risks. Under federal law, marijuana is illegal — period. So, it’s up to individual states to determine their own regulations and safety standards. Those inconsistent regulations are part of a broad debate about the U.S. cannabis industry. The 47 states that allow at least some cannabis use (cannabis is still illegal in Idaho, Kansas and Nebraska) have taken various approaches to issues such as the allowable amount of euphoria-inducing tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, in a product. “We don’t really know what’s going on behind the doors of each and every lab in each and every state,” said Anna Schwabe, a cannabis geneticist and the director of cannabis education, research and development for 420 Organics, in an interview with Stateline. “I don’t really have any sense of or any level of comfort for the numbers that they’re putting out.” Still, the lack of uniform testing standards has led to inconsistent lab results. Some labs that test products on behalf of farms have been caught inflating THC levels to cater to the demand for potent products, leading to a practice called “lab shopping” by producers, according to Leafly, an online platform dedicated to all things cannabis. “Some businesses will decide to contract with those labs because it means that their products will test stronger [in THC] and in theory, be more attractive to consumers,” said Morgan Fox, the political director for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, known as NORML. “This is pretty unethical, and also an unfortunate byproduct of a financially competitive testing market.” Some states have had to issue recalls due to products being cleared for sale despite the presence of harmful contaminants. In May 2022, the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority suspended Scale Laboratories’ testing license after regulators uncovered more than 140 approved samples with mold, salmonella or E. coli. The authority also recalled 99 products related to the lab’s alleged rules violations. An estimated 64,000-pound marijuana recall in Michigan in 2021 was linked to at least 18 health complaints, including increased seizure activity, allergic reactions, paranoia and a chemical burning sensation. The Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, which regulates the production and sale of marijuana in that state, issued a recall in late June for several batches of cannabis flower that tested positive for mold and heavy metals, including cadmium and mercury. The recalled flower was harvested before testing requirements were updated to include tests for microbiological contaminants and heavy metals. “Having some standards of operation across the board would dramatically decrease the variation that we see among labs, but then we would have to have some sort of regulatory oversight to make sure everybody is following the rules [on THC levels and testing practices], which we already don’t have,” Schwabe said. Testing methods Labs across the country have different methods of testing cannabis for potency and contamination, which may be part of the reason why there’s so much variation, Schwabe said. Some states run the labs and have a more standardized testing approach, while others offer licenses to independent labs. Inconsistent state cannabis regulations could have potentially dire implications for consumer health, according to a 2022 study published in the Environmental Health Perspectives journal. The study found that state-level regulatory disparities pose an increased risk of contaminant exposure for immunocompromised people who could contract potentially fatal infections, while also causing confusion among cannabis growers, manufacturers and testing laboratories. The study also found that identical cannabis samples could be considered acceptable in one jurisdiction but not in others. Cannabis consumers also face the challenge of navigating inconsistencies in THC potency and marijuana strain names across different dispensaries and states, Schwabe said. “If you’re thinking that Durban Poison is your go-to strain to alleviate whatever symptoms you are having and it works well for you, if you wanted to refill your medicine in a different state or at a different dispensary, you might end up getting something that’s not what you’re used to,” Schwabe said. What is permissible in one state may be prohibited or regulated differently in another, said Karmen Hanson, a senior fellow with the health program of the National Conference of State Legislatures, a think tank working on behalf of state lawmakers. “Legislators generally want to just have a program that works for their state in the way that they feel is best for their state, and that’s why they all look different,” Hanson said in an interview with Stateline. “What’s going to work in Colorado isn’t going to work for North Dakota or Texas.” [END] --- [1] Url: https://floridaphoenix.com/2023/07/11/as-more-states-legalize-pot-their-uneven-safety-rules-can-pose-a-risk/ Published and (C) by Florida Phoenix Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/floridaphoenix/