Ninth Recall in Two Months Hits Colorado Marijuana Business

Colorado's Marijuana Enforcement Division has announced a recall for marijuana from Green Tree Medicinals, a dispensary in Berthoud, because of potentially dangerous levels of the mold aspergillus.

The recall, issued May 23, includes three recreational harvest batches and one medical batch of flower, shake or trim sold at Green Tree from January 5 through March 30. Names of the recalled strains are Axilla, Glittle, Jam Sandwich and Sour Cookies, according to the MED. All marijuana products produced by Green Tree have the following medical and recreational license numbers on their packaging: 402-00859 and 402R-00771.

"Consumers who have this affected marijuana in their possession should destroy it or return it to the Regulated Marijuana Store from which it was purchased for proper disposal. If consumers experience adverse health effects from consuming the Regulated Marijuana, they should seek medical attention immediately and report the event to the Marijuana Enforcement Division by submitting a MED Reporting Form," the recall reads.

Neither Green Tree nor Trees, the dispensary group that owns Green Tree, responded to requests for comment.

Last October, the Colorado Attorney General's Office warned marijuana industry representatives about a growing number of contamination cases involving potentially adverse health effects for dispensary shoppers.

This is the third marijuana recall for aspergillus and mold issued by the MED this month, and the ninth since March 20. A common type of mold found on plants and food, aspergillus can be inhaled through smoke and cause aspergillosis, a lung and respiratory infection. However, aspergillus is also found "everywhere"
indoors and outdoors, and most strains aren't considered harmful, according to the Mayo Clinic.

A bill passed this session by the Colorado Legislature will soon allow the MED to embargo or destroy marijuana products that are deemed unsafe to the public in a manner similar to the way that the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment regulates food and drink. That measure, signed by Governor Jared Polis in March and set to take effect this summer, should give marijuana regulators the ability to move faster when disciplining bad actors or quarantining potentially unsafe products, according to the MED.

"We're talking six to eight months for an administrative appeal process before the MED can even pull the product, but what happens to the product during that time? The idea of this bill was to put some teeth behind it, so they can pull these contaminated products from stores faster," says Representative Marc Snyder, who introduced the bill.