phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES JULY 1ST – JULY 7TH, 2021 State Licensed Dispensaries & Doctor Certifications | CANNABIS | Bad Flower A Snowflake cannabis testing company is at the center of a marijuana recall. BY RAY STERN O nPoint Laboratories, a can- nabis testing company based in Snowflake, took “full re- sponsibility” for a marijuana flower recall announced last week by the state and defended the af- fected brands as “clean.” However, the lab also said in its state- ment that the recall “is not the result of any wrongdoing by the products, dispensaries, or brands, but rather an audit-based testing discrepancy between” it and the state De- partment of Health Services. OnPoint Laboratories’ statement fol- lows the DHS announcement on Wednes- day, June 24, about a voluntary recall of certain cannabis products following test results that showed traces of Salmonella and Aspergillus (mold). All the affected products were flower cannabis (a.k.a. buds), with brands includ- ing Harvest, Sol Flower, Tru Infusion, and others. No illnesses have been reported in rela- tion to the recalled products. The state DHS, which oversees Arizo- na’s voter-approved medical and recre- ational marijuana programs, said in its announcement that several dispensaries are pulling the products based on the test results. People who have purchased the products should not vape, smoke, or other- wise consume them, but get rid of them immediately. It’s the first recall of cannabis products in Arizona since the state Legislature passed its marijuana-testing law in 2019. Before that, Arizona’s 2010 medical mari- juana law didn’t subject dispensary prod- ucts to any kind of testing. Proposition 207, the recreational marijuana law passed by voters in November, also requires dispen- sary products to be tested for contaminants and potency. But the testing system has re- portedly been plagued by minimal interest by dispensaries and lack of enforcement by the state. According to the DHS, the recall devel- oped after “laboratory auditors deter- mined during routine inspection of an independent third-party laboratory” that the lab had informed marijuana establish- ments that certain samples were free of contaminants when they actually tested positive for Salmonella. The same thing also happened with samples that were pos- itive for Aspergillus, the state said. Once ADHS discovered the positive test results, “the testing information was sent to the instrument manufacturer who con- firmed that the testing results were indeed positive,” according to a second DHS state- ment. DHS says that businesses were >>p 55 Dear Schur: Ah, the edibles chef phase. A common period for stoners, but one that most of us grow out of in a few months. Most of us. Whether because of medical reasons or consumption preferences, some people would rather eat weed than smoke it. But most weed eaters who get high off the occasional gummy don’t need to cook up their own if a dispensary is selling a pack of ten down the street. If he’s making that many gummies, ol’ buddy is either selling them or has the tolerance of Jabba the Hutt. Gummies are actually cheaper and easier | ASK A STONER | BY HERBERT FUEGO Dear Stoner: My roommate thinks he’s an edibles chef, and he won’t stop making gummies. Sticky goo and isopropyl alcohol are everywhere, and our house smells like weed. Is this a phase, or should I find a new roomie? Schur to make than you might think, but they re- quire more commitment and cleanup than weed butter or oil, and God forbid he’s sloppy with the isopropyl alcohol around wood furniture. If your roommate has com- mitted to buying gummy molds and bulk amounts of gelatin, then you’ve probably lost him. Sit him down ASAP, and throw down the gauntlet: the gummies or the room. Send questions to marijuana@ westword.com. 53
