Maine legalized recreational cannabis in 2020 and for years the market moved along with little to no disruption.
But in September, the state’s Office of Cannabis Policy (OCP) issued its first-ever product recall; certain cannabis flower and pre-rolls produced by Cannabis Cured were called back after the products failed tests for yeast and mold.
Two months later and Maine has already issued two more cannabis product recalls, one of which was expanded.
In October, the OCP issued a mandatory recall for select pre-ground adult use cannabis flower, pre-rolls, and blunts produced by Nova Farms, again due to levels of yeast and mold above the pass/fail threshold. About two weeks later, the recall was expanded to include more cannabis flower, pre-rolls, and blunts.
In November, the OCP issued another mandatory recall for select adult-use flower produced by Leb City Greeneries due to the presence of yeast and mold above the pass/fail threshold.
Now, state regulators are stepping up efforts to randomly audit cannabis companies to ensure they’re properly testing their products. According to the Portland Press Herald, the OCP attributed the current issues with licensees either making mistakes in how they take samples and/or use remediation and pre-treatment technology, or “they have purposely neglected their responsibilities in these areas.”
In addition to increasing inspections, the OCP is also working on educational materials for cannabis companies to ensure they’re sticking to best practices for sampling, handling and remediation for test samples.
