Dozens of medical cannabis cultivators and other business owners voiced concerns Thursday at the State Capitol over the potential negative impact of new yeast and mold testing requirements for flowers.
During an advisory meeting with state health officials and legislators, small-size cultivators said they are being squeezed both by new testing regulations and methods, which is causing more failed sanitation tests and by the fact that if they fail, there is currently no way to have the product retested if the batch is "cleansed".
They said this could threaten some small cultivators' livelihoods. According to figures from several sources, the new testing standard alone will likely cost smaller growers thousands either through retesting and pretests, cleansing, or purchasing new equipment.
It is already a distressed industry, with 393 licensed Mississippi cannabis businesses, including dispensaries, cultivators, and processors, serving 43,000 medically approved customers across the state, a tough ratio for these businesses.
"Some of the farmers are living from crop to crop… I think we're pushing this a little too fast. I don't have an issue with (the testing standard). I'm all for it, but I have an issue with we don't have an accurate testing guideline to reach that number," Phen Schlett, owner of Big River Cannabis, said, referring to how cultivators haven't been given guidelines on how to reduce the number of yeast and mold cells in crops.
Source: clarionledger.com