Most cannabis samples from illegal retailers in B.C. study were not fit for sale
A new analysis of contamination in cannabis seized from illegal retailers in Metro Vancouver has authorities encouraging consumers to switch to the legal cannabis market.
B.C. Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth shared some of the study's findings at a news conference Wednesday.
In 20 samples of dried cannabis flower sent for analysis, 24 distinct pesticides were found, with nearly every sample having evidence of at least one potentially harmful product, Farnworth said.
The study also found unacceptable levels of bacteria, fungi and heavy metals in many of the samples, he added.
The public safety minister said the findings lead to a simple conclusion: Legal cannabis, which is regulated and tested by Health Canada, is safer.
"Don't buy illicit cannabis, because you don't know what's in it and it may be contaminated," Farnworth said. "If you choose to use cannabis, buy it legal."
The study's full findings can be found on the website of the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health, which conducted the analysis on samples provided by the B.C. Cannabis Secretariat.
According to the centre, only three of the 20 samples would have met health standards for sale on the legal market without further analysis. Nine of the samples failed to meet legal standards outright, while the remaining eight would have required further investigation to determine their suitability for sale through the legal system.
The centre describes the analysis as a "pilot study," and notes several limitations on the findings.
"This small sub-sample is not representative of all illicit cannabis in Metro Vancouver," the centre's summary notes. "Because the samples were from cannabis seized from illicit store fronts, we do not know the provenance of the material. The 20 samples may have been produced by 20 different growers, or one. They may have been grown within Metro Vancouver or may have been sourced from elsewhere."
For Farnworth, that's part of the point.
"When you buy from an illicit storefront or an online seller, you don't know where it's coming from or whether it's clean and fit for human consumption," he said. "In contrast, when you buy from a licensed seller, you can trust the label on the product."
Farnworth said a total of 160 illegal cannabis retailers have either been shut down or closed voluntarily in B.C. since legalization, and added that the province is working on further enforcement against the illicit market.
With a total of 370 legal cannabis retailers now operating around British Columbia, the idea that the legal market is inconvenient should no longer be an excuse for purchasing cannabis illegally, Farnworth said.
At the same time, he acknowledged that the transition to a legal cannabis industry has been happening slowly, something he attributed, in part, to consumers' entrenched buying habits.
"It's been legal now in this province for just over two and a half years," Farnworth said. "In the state of Colorado, very similar to British Columbia in many ways, it took four years for them to get from a 100 per cent illegal market to a 70 per cent legal market, and we are on that same path."
B.C. retailers sold about $20 million worth of legal cannabis in March 2020, and sold more than double that amount - $43 million - in March of this year, according to Farnworth.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
First court appearance for boy and girl charged in death of Halifax 16-year-old
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.