Colorado’s Department of Revenue’s Marijuana Enforcement Division has announced the implementation of expanded mandatory medical cannabis potency testing beginning next month.
Under the expanded testing, an “optional premises cultivation operation” or medical marijuana infused product manufacturer must have a potency test conducted on every production batch of medical marijuana concentrate. Likewise, manufacturers of medical marijuana infused products will be required to have potency tests conducted by an approved testing facility on each batch of products.
The Department says the testing is “a matter of public health and safety.”
Production batches created prior to November 1, 2017 are not subject to the new potency testing requirements.
In other recent regulatory news of out Colorado, a ban on the sale of edible marijuana products shaped like animals, people and fruit took effect at the beginning of this month. The ban, which was forewarned last year, is designed to help minimise the risk of children ingesting the products. However, the ban doesn’t prevent the sale of other shapes not mentioned above.
Given the amount of time manufacturers have had to prepare, the start of the ban has reportedly had little impact on those in the industry.
In addition to the ban, new potency labeling requirements have come into force.
“Marijuana products in shape and branding should not be enticing to children and we want consumers to be educated about the potency of the products they are buying, these rules ensure that to be the case,” stated Colorado Department of Revenue Executive Director Mike Hartman.
Colorado isn’t the first state to implement a ban on edibles shapes that may be particularly attractive to children. Washington has done so and California is also considering a ban.
As we mentioned in February, Iowa’s draft medical cannabis regulations take things a step further than Colorado, banning products bearing a “reasonable” resemblance to candy, fruits, animals or human characters; or any object that would appeal to children.
Colorado’s retail and medical marijuana sectors have proven to be a cash cow for the state government’s coffers. This year’s total total revenue from all marijuana taxes, licenses and fees (to the end of August) reached $158,746,120.
