Minnesota Sues Company for Allegedly Selling High-Potency Cannabis Gummies

The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy has filed a civil lawsuit against Northland Vapor, alleging that the cannabis product retailer sold edibles that are 50 times more potent than legally allowed under the state’s limited adult-use program, CBS News reports.

The state pharmaceutical board and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are together investigating complaints about Northland Vapor’s “Death By Gummy Bears” line of edibles. Officials raided the company’s Moorhead-based manufacturing warehouse and found nearly 150,000 packages of infused edibles exceeding the state’s 5-milligram cap on THC potency, according to the report.

The raids reportedly led to the seizure of:

• 28,896 packages of “Death by Gummy Bears” edibles, containing 100 milligrams of THC per serving (totaling 2,500 milligrams per package)
• 112,710 packages of “Death by Gummy Bears” edibles, containing 100 milligrams of THC per serving (totaling 2,500 milligrams per package)
• 2,400 packages of “Wonky Weeds” edibles, containing 30 milligrams of THC per serving (totaling 300 milligrams per package)
• 2,310 bottles of “Wonky Weeds” syrup containing 700 milligrams of THC per bottle

Tyler Leverington, an attorney for Northland Vapor, said the state’s lawsuit was an “aggressive tactic” aimed at smearing the company’s reputation.

“There is no evidence of any harm arising from the proper use of Northland products. The state’s effort to suggest otherwise are shameful,” Leverington told CBS News. “Northland is a small business committed to making a quality product and now must fight for its life against over-zealous regulators in St. Paul looking to make a splash with their newly adopted law.”

While the 2018 Farm Bill federally legalized hemp and all of its derivatives, FDA has previously noted that products containing hemp-derived delta-8 THC “have not been evaluated or approved by the FDA for safe use in any context.”

Minnesota’s unique cannabis edibles law took effect on July 4, legalizing gummies and similar products that contain no more than 5 milligrams of hemp-derived THC (including both delta-8 and delta-9 THC) for adults aged 21 and older.