Nevada cannabis regulators issue product pesticide advisory

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nevada marijuana regulators have issued a health and safety advisory about widely available legal cannabis products produced in the Las Vegas area during the last 16 months using plants treated with an unapproved pesticide.

The Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board bulletin posted Thursday said Henderson-based Clark Natural Medicinal Solutions treated some plants with Ethephon.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Ethephon is a plant growth regulator used to promote ripening. The EPA found Ethephon “moderately acutely toxic” on exposed skin, when inhaled or ingested.

The board said people should “avoid or take caution” when consuming products harvested by Clark Natural Medicinal Solutions since July 2021, including “cannabis flowers, shake/trim and uninfused pre-rolls.”

“There is no reason to believe the cannabis sales facilities or cannabis testing facilities had any knowledge of the use of this unapproved pesticide,” the board said in the bulletin. “Ethephon is not on the list of pesticides the testing facilities must look for, and their test methods are not set up for detection of Ethephon.”

The board said products should have labels on packaging showing where cannabis was harvested. It offered a downloadable list of more than 100 legal dispensary licensees that it said offered the product.