The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) announced rule revisions yesterday that change many aspects of the Washington cannabis industry, including new product recall procedures for several different scenarios.
Hilary Bricken of the Canna Law Blog notes that under the LCB’s new rules, there will be three possible scenarios that could result in a product recall: exempt market withdrawals, in which licensees would recall a product over aesthetic or packaging issues; licensee-initiated recalls, wherein licensed producers and processors are expected to voluntarily withdraw products that contain contaminants or restricted pesticides; and board investigation-initiated recalls, which would only occur whenever a licensee “fails to engage in recall efforts that meet the urgency of the risk to public health and safety.”
The LCB also removed language from the state’s marijuana rules that served as a total destruction stipulation for producers and processors whose products fail initial testing. Now, Board-issued penalties for producers and processors are purely monetary. This is particularly beneficial for Washington’s outdoor cannabis growers, who have been haunted since the market’s launch by the fact that a single failed test could result in the mandated destruction of their entire plot.
Here are a few other rule changes that the LCB identified in an email issued yesterday:
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Revised the definition of “licensed premises” to include all areas of a premises where the licensee has leasehold rights and any vehicle assigned to transport marijuana;
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Removed the requirement that “Mr. Yuk” stickers must be on all labels for marijuana infused edible solid and liquid products. The Board will work with the Washington State Poison Center to create a new indicator for marijuana infused products;
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Added language that failure to address monetary penalties for two or more violation notices in a three year period will result in license cancellation. Licensees failing to respond to a violation or have outstanding fines shall not be eligible to renew;