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State looks to hire a pot inspector
By adamg on Mon, 11/06/2017 - 9:48am
With marijuana well on its way to becoming our next big cash crop, the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources is advertising a position for a full-time cannabis inspector.
Alas, simply being familiar with the product (and hemp) is not enough; successful candidates will need familiarity with existing cannabis rule enforcement in other states as well as "a Bachelors’ Degree or higher in Agronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Plant Pathology, Entomology, or related fields" and experience with doing biology stuff out in the field.
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Comments
Idiocracy
Except for maybe PCP lacing, just what can go wrong with marijuana?
"Dude, like this badge thing gives me the power to slap a schwag label on your whole stash, so like you better make sure it is grade A hydrochronic next time man. Now let me inspect some more of that sensi, brah"
One assumes that the
One assumes that the inspections are for meeting the licensing requirements (physically secure, not visible to the public, etc), the use of appropriate chemicals-- you don't want someone using really toxic pesticides on something that's going to go into a product intended to treat cancer pain-- and so forth.
Probably a good understanding of pest control is critical-- you don't want one farmer's mite problem to wipe out the entire crop statewide, and you don't want them overreacting with banned neonicotinoids either.
Aren't most of the bigger
Aren't most of the bigger growers growing hydro, not soil, thus a rare occurrence? And with indoor grows, aren't mite issues generally contained with food-grade diatomaceous earth? But how is one farmer's mite problem going to wipe out everyone's crops, anyway? That sounds a bit fantastical.
I'm not an agricultural
I'm not an agricultural biologist, I'm just spitballing.
Just seems like it's not bizarre to have an inspector for a multimillion-dollar agricultural industry that produces a controlled substance.
I don't follow this too closely
But I remember reading something a while back that there is some move to make sure the product reflects what you think it is, namely that the levels of THC and other agents are what they are supposed to be.
Aside from that, one of the benefits of legalization is a regulation of the product, that you would know what you are getting at the point of purchase. That, and as you note inspection supports the understanding that nothing is in the product that shouldn't be there.
All sorts of other agricultural products are regulated and inspected. Why should put be different?
Dubbie Dude Wanted
Dubbie Dude Wanted
Yep, that's weed. That's weed
Yep, that's weed. That's weed, too. This? Oregano. Ooh, here's some more weed!
Just trying to bureaucratize what should be a pretty simple process. You think the people who sell and consume the product don't have any damn idea what is real and safe? Given how much red tape the state is trying to pile up around this, including insane barriers to entry, I don't care to give the state a red cent in tax (not that I am more than a very occasional consumer).
IMHO, some level of
IMHO, some level of bureaucracy is okay when dealing with something that is consumed, and intoxicates. Not much different from regulating booze.
having recently acquired a
having recently acquired a medical MJ card, I've been impressed by the quality of weed from Sage, Patriot Care, and NETA. All are tested and include package dates, batch/lot testing dates, etc. All their grow facilities seem pretty secure and they take great care for QA
the new state pot inspector
Mr. kevin Kevin!
really really needed in MA - I experienced this myself recently
I grow legally at home in rozzie and have been sending my legal recreational homegrow products in to the same labs that do the testing for medical marijuana. I test for potency and also pay extra for the safety screens (microbiological, heavy metals, etc.)
Guess what? One of my samples came back with super bad levels of heavy metal contaminants. Namely Arsenic and Cadmium. This was for stuff I grew myself in organic soil, hand watering with boston tap water and using a nutrient mix from a highly regarded CA based maker of specialist fertilizers.
There is a lot of stuff that can go wrong with pot -- ranging from nasty undeclared pesticides used on outdoor grows to biological contaminants like mold and powdery mildew in the dried flower product.
We need inspectors and we need good testing in MA
David Bernstein is moving
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