By Ali Swenson | Phoenix New Times
Arizona’s medical cannabis industry has long been a Wild West without mandatory testing, but a new state advisory council is about to settle in and bring some law and order.
Officials at the state Department of Health Services picked members for a medical marijuana testing advisory council last week, meeting the first requirement of a new law that requires widespread cannabis testing to start by November 2020. Up until this point, Arizona’s pot industry hasn’t had any sort of government-certified testing program.
The law signed by Governor Doug Ducey in June, SB 1494, says dispensaries must test marijuana products for “microbial contamination, heavy metals, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, growth regulators, and residual solvents,” as well as confirm each product’s potency.
“Developing purity and potency standards for medical marijuana is of paramount importance to the industry and those that depend on it. The objective of the Medical Marijuana Act was to help patients with serious diseases cope. Product testing for quality control measures is necessary to ensure continued successes and prevent unintended consequences. Our office is looking forward to working with industry stakeholders to observe and comment on the MMJ Testing Advisory Council’s process and achieving the best possible outcome for patients.”
