Officials issue health alert for pesticide-tainted pot - News - MailTribune.com - Medford, OR

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Officials issue health alert for pesticide-tainted pot Saturday Oct 22, 2016 at 10:52 AM Oct 22, 2016 at 10:52 AM MCMINNVILLE (AP) — State health officials have issued a health alert about marijuana products that may have been tainted with high levels of a pesticide and sold to about 130 people southwest of Portland. The Oregon Health Authority said Friday the alert concerns dried flower marijuana sold by a medical marijuana dispensary called New Leaf in McMinnville. The strain names are Dr. Jack, batch number G6J0051-02, and Marion Berry, batch number G6J0051-01. The products were sold to customers between Oct. 17 and Oct. 19 and came from batches that failed a pesticide test, containing high levels of a chemical known as spinosad. The OHA action level for spinosad is 0.2 parts per million. The batches of Dr. Jack and Marion Berry contained 42 and 22 ppm, respectively. Anyone finding the tainted product can return it to the dispensary or dispose of it. Effects of smoking marijuana containing spinosad are not known. According to the National Pesticide Information Center at Oregon State University, spinosad is a natural substance made by a soil bacterium that can be toxic to insects. Those concerned about exposure should contact the Oregon Poison Center at 800-222-1222. The OHA advises consumers to read marijuana product labels. All labels must have the producer's business or trade name and license number; the name of the business that packaged or distributed the product, if different from the producer; the name of the strain; and the universal symbol. Consumers should also request a copy of the pesticide test results from the dispensary, the OHA says.