According to a March 6 safety advisory from the Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division, marijuana, shake and trim grown by DSA LLC had unsafe levels of mold, yeast and aspergillus, a specific type of mold that can be dangerous when inhaled.
DSA is a wholesale growing operation that does not have a branded business name. According to the MED, the recalled marijuana was only sold at one store in Colorado: the Green Remedy, located at 1052 South Quebec Street.
The ownerships of Green Remedy and DSA are not connected, according to MED licensee documents. Attempts to reach DSA have been unsuccessful so far.
Unlike the vast majority of marijuana mold recalls, which extend to multiple stores and often stretch back over a year, this advisory only includes one harvest batch of DSA marijuana sold from November 17 to December 5 of 2023. The name of the recalled strain was not listed, but all DSA marijuana is sold with this license number on its packaging:
403R-01004.
"Individuals who possess this affected product should destroy it or return it to the store from which it was purchased for proper disposal. Individuals who experience adverse health effects after consuming the affected product should seek medical attention immediately and report the event to the MED by submitting an MED Reporting Form," the recall notice reads.
Colorado's Marijuana Mold Problem
This is the third marijuana recall issued in 2024, all for mold concerns — but it's also the third recall issued within the last three weeks.The MED issued eighteen recalls in 2023, all connected to improper testing procedures or improper levels of mold, yeast or aspergillus. A common mold found indoors, outdoors and in marijuana samples, aspergillus can be inhaled through smoke and, in rare cases, can lead to the lung infection aspergillosis.
Over two dozen cases of aspergillosis associated with marijuana use have been reported across the country, two of which were fatal (neither death was in Colorado). The MED recently came out in defense of its aspergillus testing protocols, which look for four specific strains of aspergillus, but marijuana industry representatives and at least two lawmakers view the aspergillus requirement as unnecessary and burdensome.
Senate Bill 24-076, introduced by state Senator Kevin Van Winkle, would remove aspergillus from the MED's list of tested contaminants, among a handful of other significant changes to Colorado marijuana regulations. That bill passed its first hearing with amendments on March 5; the aspergillus testing removal remains in the measure's current language.
