{"id":2819,"date":"2021-12-06T12:33:50","date_gmt":"2021-12-06T12:33:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/CBMiXmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmN0aW5zaWRlci5jb20vbmV3cy9hcnRpY2xlL0Nvbm5lY3RpY3V0LXJhaXNlcy1tb2xkLWxldmVscy1mb3ItbWVkaWNhbC0xNjY3ODQ3NC5waHDSAQA"},"modified":"2021-12-06T12:33:50","modified_gmt":"2021-12-06T12:33:50","slug":"connecticut-raises-mold-levels-for-medical-marijuana-at-one-lab-emails-show-ct-insider","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thcinct.com\/?p=2819","title":{"rendered":"Connecticut raises mold levels for medical marijuana at one lab, emails show – CT Insider"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Connecticut approved an increased limit of mold and yeast allowed in medical marijuana at one of the state\u2019s two cannabis testing labs through private emails last year, documents show.<\/p>\n

At the request of AltaSci Labs, the state Department of Consumer Protection agreed to raise the total passing level of yeast and mold from 10,000 colony forming units per gram to 1 million per gram for the lab, according to August 2020 emails obtained via a Hearst Connecticut Media Group public records request.<\/p>\n

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The request, which also included the addition of testing for a specific genus of mold, was the result of a 2015 study and changes from other states, officials said. Meanwhile, at Northeast Laboratories, the state\u2019s other cannabis testing facility, the passing limit remains 10,000 CFU per gram.<\/p>\n

Connecticut, which is in the throes of launching its adult-use recreational program, has about 54,000 medical marijuana patients who were not notified about the change in mold and yeast levels.<\/p>\n

State regulators argue that the looser restrictions paired with the addition of testing for the Aspergillus mold genus makes the product safer.<\/p>\n

Not all states have set requirements for testing medical marijuana. The result: A patchwork set of regulations that varies widely from state to state, and in Connecticut\u2019s case, from lab to lab.<\/p>\n

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The testing standards evolve often with new research. Without federal standards, it\u2019s a learning process, said Rodrick Marriott, the department\u2019s Drug Control Division director.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis program, and especially the microbiology portions of it, evolves over time based on things that other states learn, and that we learn, going through all of this, and really, you know, I don’t think there’s any true perfect system for this and no kind of like magic bullet to say what’s exactly perfect,\u201d Marriott said. \u201cWe continue to learn from our peers.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the same August email, AltaSci suggested adding testing for four variants of the Aspergillus mold genus, which the state approved.<\/p>\n

The Aspergillus genus is most likely to be harmful to consumers, and the state doesn\u2019t allow any detectable levels in the marijuana, Marriott said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile this is not in USP 2023, it has been stablished [sic] by the industry that this is quite important in terms of patient safety,\u201d Jose Zavaleta, AltaSci\u2019s lab director, wrote in a 2020 email to Jessie McGinn, the lab\u2019s quality manager.<\/p>\n

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McGinn forwarded that email to Scott Stoppa, a drug control agent at the state Department of Consumer Protection, who gave the lab the approval a couple of weeks after the initial request.<\/p>\n

\u2018Taking cues\u2019<\/h2>\n

When setting standards, the state is \u201ctaking cues\u201d from the industry, which includes labs, producers and dispensaries, Marriott said.<\/p>\n

When a request for a change or new research is received, Marriott and his team usually consider it. The department doesn\u2019t have a microbiologist on staff, so he sometimes consults with university professors, and never relies on just the recommendation of a cannabis business, he said.<\/p>\n

For this decision, a team of six at AltaSci considered a 2015 study and moves in other states, including New York, California and Missouri, where testing is done for specific mold genuses, including Aspergillus rather than a total count, Zavaleta said.<\/p>\n

The move has sparked concerns among some Connecticut medical marijuana patients about the safety of the substance and transparency within the program.<\/p>\n

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\u201cLike anyone else, patients are busy people with limited time to spend thinking about whether their medication is safe,\u201d said Lou Rinaldi, a Connecticut medical marijuana patient. \u201cIf DCP is going to make a significant change to testing standards, say something that loosens safety restrictions by multiple orders of magnitude, those changes need to be communicated to patients proactively.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zavaleta said he\u2019s been surprised by negative reactions to the move \u2014 he expected it to be met with positive reactions because of the Aspergillus testing, which he believes makes the product safer, he said.<\/p>\n

He and Marriott said the new standards protect patient safety.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe kept the (1 million per gram) where other states didn’t put a cap on the total use for yeast and mold,\u201d Marriott said. \u201cThey\u2019ve actually removed the caps on total yeast and mold. So we felt like this was a reasonable change to still protect our patients and provide good product for our patients.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Who do you trust?\u2019<\/h2>\n

But the change and the lack of notification has left patients like Mallory O\u2019Connor, a new New Haven resident, worried.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Connor has a sensitivity to the issue after an event years ago in which she got pleurisy from a batch of marijuana she bought before she had her Connecticut license. She was hospitalized with the lung infection and it took her six months of after-care appointments to recover.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like if I went to the store and my lettuce had mold on it, there would be like a big report letting us all know \u2026 meanwhile, this is medicine and people are already sick and we\u2019re not even being warned,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Connor uses cannabis to treat her post traumatic stress disorder. She\u2019s careful to check the lab reports the state posts online before she buys it, but worries about the increased levels of mold, especially because her lungs are still more sensitive since the infection.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf one lab is saying, \u2018This is safe,\u2019 then another lab is saying \u2018this is safe,\u2019 then who do you trust?,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

However, Marriott reiterated that not all mold is harmful and patient safety is a top priority.<\/p>\n

\u2018Lack of consistency\u2019<\/h2>\n

Dr. Kevin Sabet, president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana and critic of the industry who wrote the book, \u201cSmokescreen,\u201d said most labs in general have \u201cvery little real oversight.\u201d Sabet wrote the book \u201cSmokescreen,\u201d about the marijuana industry.<\/p>\n

Differing standards between labs as well as lack of a stringent certification process contribute to the issue, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe result is dangerously high levels of mold, bacteria, fungi, and other additives,\u201d Sabet said in a statement in response to questions from Hearst Connecticut Media. \u201cMarijuana gets a free pass by states, who don\u2019t have the infrastructure to regulate it properly and to make sure the product is mold-free.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe would never accept these standards in other things we consume, but marijuana is operating in a gray area that allows growers to take advantage for profit gain.\u201d<\/p>\n