Colorado's Packaging Laws May Leave Shop Owners in Deep Weed

COMMERCE, CA—December 31, 2013—Several owners of marijuana shops that are scheduled to open in Colorado early next year are struggling to find compliant containers for their medical marijuana supplies. The Colorado Department of Revenue has imposed rules upon marijuana dispensaries that call for all pot products, including buds and edibles, to be placed in opaque and child-resistant packaging before they leave the store. This was done as a way to reduce the risk of accidental ingestion of marijuana products by young children.

One supplier here in California has already had an influx of new business, all of whom are demanding these opaque child resistant vials. Vials on Demand has been a leader in supplying marijuana dispensaries and individuals with the tools they need to be successful. A representative for the company stated, “Our opaque vial stockpile at our warehouse has been slowly dwindling as more and more new clients keep requesting them, especially the white opaque and black opaque vials.” He added, “We have even begun to place certain size neon colored child resistant vials on back order because of the new law passed in Colorado.”

When asked about his stance on the newly enacted rules governing packaging of marijuana in California, the representative replied, “It is our duty as both a business as well as a member of the community to ensure the safe and secure transport of marijuana; it would be absolutely devastating to learn that a child somewhere down the line accidentally ingests marijuana because someone decided to not use child resistant packaging.”

Earlier in this year, the Journal of Pediatrics revealed that there has been an increase in the number of children and teens that have been poisoned and hospitalized after ingesting adult prescription medications. Researchers apart of the study saw a parallel between the increase in adult prescription medication and the increase in phone calls made to poison centers related to child poisonings.

“We don’t want to see similar statistics with the increased usage of marijuana,” said the representative for Vials on Demand. “It is better that we head off the problem now, then later discover that a growing number of children are being unintentionally exposed to marijuana due to a lack of caution taken when handling marijuana,” he added.

While improvements to child safety packaging have been made, the battle against unintentional exposure is still ongoing. As more and more states pass legislation legalizing marijuana either completely or for certain medical uses, it is important for both medical dispensaries and individual users to understand just how important child resistant packaging is. This type of packaging should be obtained by trusted suppliers and should be scrutinized every time someone leaves a dispensary with a bottle in hand. Not only will it ensure products are packaged in a manner that keeps them fresh, it also helps to save lives of young children.

For more on the rules imposed by the Colorado Department of Revenue, please visit http://www.colocode.com/boulder2/chapter6-14.htm.

Source: A&A Packaging.