PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The Oregon Liquor Control Commission is issuing an immediate health and safety recall after identifying pesticide contaminated marijuana products sold through OLCC recreational marijuana licensed retailers, the agency announced Wednesday.
OLCC has notified retailers to place a hold on all affected products, which include marijuana flower and extract products.
A primary laboratory known as Ecotest had marked the products as having passed a pesticide test (for the analyte Abamectin) in March 2020 despite an initial failed testing with a subcontracted laboratory. In September 2020, OLCC suspended the license of Ecotest due to a number of violations, including the loss of accreditation from the Oregon Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ORELAP) for failing to meet required testing procedures and standards. OLCC later formally cancelled Ecotest’s license.
The contaminated products include several strains of marijuana flower pre-rolls, and “Purple Slurry” extract. The processor who made “Purple Slurry Extract” was unaware of the incorrect results from Ecotest at the time the extract was made. The contaminated product was mixed with marijuana flower from other sources when the extract was made; after it was processed from flower into extract, the finished product passed subsequent pesticide testing. But under Oregon Health Authority rules, usable marijuana that has failed pesticide testing cannot be remediated or used in a processed item.
Consumers can identify the affected products with the following information:
“Emerald Extracts Purple Slurry”
- Manufactured by Emerald Treasure LLC (030-1008341A083)
- Label Id = 2805
- Made on 9/9/20
- Tested by MW Labs (010-1008606C050) on 9/14/2020
Marijuana flower pre-rolls
- Strains of “Qurkle,” “BP Oil Slick,” or “Green Crush”
- Tested by Ecotest (010-1008170B3B6) on 3/12/2020
- Sold from Bernie’s Universal Dispensaries in South Beach, OR
Consumers who have the recalled products should dispose of them or return them to the retailer where they were purchased, a list of which with the times and places of when the products were sold can be found here. Follow these instructions on OLCC’s website to destroy your own marijuana.
The contaminated marijuana originally entered the Oregon market from a medical grower transferring it into the OLCC regulated system. Oregon Medical Marijuana Program growers are allowed, with prior permission, to sell no more than 20 pounds of marijuana flower annually into the recreation system.
The contamination issue was reported to OLCC on Dec. 29 by a second processor whose extract product failed pesticide testing; their product was never sold to consumers.
No reports of illness have been made so far and it is unknown what the possible health impact of consuming marijuana products with unapproved pesticide residues on it would be, OLCC said. Consumers with questions or concerns about recalled products or pesticide residues in marijuana products are encouraged to contact the product retailer and/or Oregon Poison Center at 800-222-1222.
Read the entire press release from OLCC here.