Lab reports high amounts of pesticides found in marijuana products

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — An Oklahoma lab is once again sounding the alarm about medical marijuana.

They say tests have found pesticides in products that are already on the shelf, marked for sale.

These latest results come months after the same lab found mold, yeast, and even salmonella in several pot products.

Havard Industries says the issue stems from the state's rules and regulations.

The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority only requires testing for 13 pesticides, but Jeffrey Havard says there are many more in use that aren't being tested for.

"The problem is that the majority of pesticides that are up there on the counter are not even ones that we're even monitoring for," Havard said.

There are growing concerns at Havard Industries surrounding the type of pesticides they say they have found in marijuana products on the shelves, being labeled "test passed."

"It needs to be kind of flexible as far as like which pesticides we're looking at, and not just be the same 13 that we've been looking out for all these years," Havard said.

Havard says the fault does not lie with the labs testing the products.

They are following the rules of required testing for 13 specific pesticides, but he says many more are out there.

"It's going to be essentially a product that is like technically passing, but will still contain other pesticides that are ones that we're not even looking for," Havard said.

A report by Havard Industries found nearly 20 different pesticides being used on products grown in Oklahoma, meaning a handful go undetected.

"It is kind of concerning," Havard said. "Like other states, we feel should be really caring about the pesticide issue here and the fact that we're not testing for as many. Because, if these products make it out of Oklahoma by chance, then other people are going to be affected by these pesticides as well."

He says the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority called for an expansion of the pesticide list of 60 this past legislative session, but it was cut last minute.

The legislature disapproved proposed permanent rules that expanded the list of pesticides to be tested for. Please read and review the REINS Act. The legislature is on high alert for any rule that could potentially increase the cost of doing business. This was seen as potentially costing businesses more money in testing costs. We're going to have earlier conversations with the legislature about why we're doing this and potential costs to the industry. We're going to have those conversations earlier and ensure everyone's at the table.

Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority

Havard believes there are a couple of ways to address this.

"I think by expanding the pesticide list, that would actually be pretty helpful," Havard says. "We still do feel like the best logic here is to do a large scale survey to see what's available in Oklahoma. Then that way it's like if somebody goes to pick up a pesticide, like a hardware store or grows supply store or somewhere else, that we're actually capturing the relevant pesticides that could be used and then monitoring for those."

Havard Industries says they will continue to present their reports to OMMA and legislators to try and increase the list of pesticides tested in the state.

OMMA says they will present another list to state leaders next session.