Denver’s Kindman Cannabis Disputes the Pesticide Recall Announcement by Colorado’s Department of Agriculture
Denver, Colorado (PRWEB) March 17, 2016 -- Kindman cannabis is disputing the recent results of a Colorado Department of Agriculture lab test on the company’s products: tests that allege some Kindman plants were grown with unapproved pesticides.
According to a report by the Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division, cannabis samples from Kindman came back positive for trace amounts of imidacloprid, an insecticide commonly used in mainstream agriculture but banned last year by Colorado officials for use on cannabis.
Ryan Fox, Kindman founder and CEO, says Kindman complies with regulations imposed by the state’s Marijuana Enforcement Division (MED). The company, he continues, does not use imidacloprid.
The state’s tests reportedly came back with results of 20 parts per billion of imidacloprid, a miniscule amount, which leads some experts to wonder if the Department of Agriculture’s samples might have been contaminated.
Rachel K. Gillette, a Colorado-based attorney who has represented legal marijuana businesses since 2010 and who is on the board of directors for Colorado NORML, the state chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, says these testing procedures “leave a lot to be desired for licensed marijuana businesses.”
Once a legal marijuana product has been recalled, she notes, the affected company has no way to determine if the Department of Agriculture used proper testing protocols.
“There might be cross contamination issues,” she adds, “there could be chain of custody issues where (the sample) gets contaminated. We don’t know, but we’re getting conflicting results from this state-certified lab -- the lab that’s testing for the Department of Agriculture -- and the licensee has no way to verify the results.”
Fox says his company has stayed away from chemical pest control; by adhering to the Colorado Department of Agriculture’s regulations for pesticide use in cannabis production.
“We use the same products you’d find in organic vegetables at the supermarket,” he says.
Kindman also uses anti-pest and anti-fungal products certified by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI). That includes the use of neem oil; a naturally-occurring pesticide made from neem tree seeds. The company has also helped to pioneer the use of an integrated pest management system for its cannabis grows; including the introduction of predatory insects like ladybugs, that eat the larvae of spider mites and other unwanted insects in the grow rooms.
One other factor: Kindman’s Fox notes that when those original samples were taken by the Department of Agriculture there were other, complementary samples “taken side-by-side by an independent laboratory, and that independent lab came back with different results from the state’s tests.”
He also takes issue with the state’s policy of not retesting samples in such cases, and says that lack of recourse can have a heavy economic fallout on Colorado’s cannabis industry. Multiple legal cannabis retailers across the state rely solely on Kindman products, Fox continues, “So any false lab results could potentially cost hundreds of people their jobs. With all that on the line, it’s unbelievable that the Department of Agriculture is refusing to retest the samples in question.”
“We take very seriously our role as caretakers of the public’s health,” he adds, “and understand the responsibilities behind the products that our customers consume.”
ABOUT KINDMAN
Established in 2009, Kindman provides customers with an unmatched cannabis product – grown in Colorado state-regulated facilities at indoor locations, using a customized process that combines food-grade nutrients and a unique soil mix that brings out the plant's best features. Close attention is paid to product cleanliness, quality, curing and processing.
Since the January 1, 2014 start of legalized sales of recreational cannabis to adults in Colorado, Kindman has provided high-quality marijuana flowers to tens of thousands of customers from over 100 countries.
For more information, visit: http://www.kindmancolorado.com/
Tags: Marijuana, cannabis, pesticides, cannabis and pesticide use, Kindman, legal cannabis industry, Colorado Department of Agriculture
Bruce Kennedy, WeedLife Network, +1 404-259-1231, [email protected]
Share this article