State-wide marijuana recall affects local dispensaries
Cannabis, long considered by the Federal government a most heavily regulated Schedule I controlled substance, could be reclassified as a Schedule III drug under a recommendation published Jan. 12 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. [CM Life photo | file]
Marijuana dispensaries all over Michigan, including some Mount Pleasant stores, are being forced to recall large amounts of marijuana.
On Nov. 17 the Marijuana Regulatory Agency announced all flower products tested by Viridis Laboratories and Viridis North between Aug. 10 and Nov. 16 have been recalled from the shelves of 403 Michigan dispensaries.
Only flower, the dried leaves of the cannabis plant used for smoking, has been recalled. Concentrate products such as vapes, live resin and distillate that were approved by the lab are still being sold.
"We had a lot to pull from our shelves, but it didn't have a detrimental effect on our ability to sell," Jars Manager Caitlyn Sikkila said. "We're doing totally fine, we had all the recalled stuff off our shelves before we even opened."
Neither Jars, located at 1005 Corporate Dr or any other Mount Pleasant recreational shops have had to close doors or stop selling products completely.
Medical dispensaries such as Consano have also been affected by the recall.
"It's a precaution, pulling everything and retesting it." Manager Caleb Cary said. "It's forced us to pull a lot of flower off shelves. It's not so bad that there is no flower, but every shop has a chunk of flower they have to pull now."
Any customer who purchased flower products before the recall is encouraged to return the product to the supplier for proper disposal.
The MRA encourages any consumer who experiences adverse reactions to using these products to report their symptoms to their physician and to the MRA directly through email at MRA-Enforcment@michigan.gov.
An investigation into the product testing conducted by the MRA is ongoing. Visit Michigan.gov for more information and a complete list of dispensaries that have recalled products.
