Curaleaf faces multiple lawsuits for mislabeled wellness drops

Back in December, CLN published an article on mislabeled strains based on the fact that phenotypes are much more complicated than we realize. But this confusion with Curaleaf is just an inadvertent human error on the part of the company. Accidentally or not, those affected have been through a lot. The facility where the mix-up took place is in Portland, Oregon and ten cases have already been resolved. The product was CBD wellness drops, but instead of containing CBD, the bottles were also infused with THC.

An unsuspecting man was rushed to the emergency room in an ambulance over concerns about a stroke. He experienced more than your average uncomfortable high, including unnecessary surgery, fear of death, unwanted confusion, stress, anxiety, psychosis, discomfort, and hours of desperation. Another person suffered from involuntary hallucinations, confusion, stress, anxiety, psychosis, discomfort, and distress for 24 hours.

Photo by Elsa Olofsson on Unsplash

An Idaho resident wants to take their case publicly to hold the company accountable and raise awareness that a situation like this won’t recur. Ayuba Agbonkhes, an Air Force veteran who served in Iraq, said Curaleaf did not apologize to him for his unexpected “trip,” that is, to the emergency room.

“I want them to get better and I want the industry to get better and I want a safer community.”

Ayuba Agbonkhes

While there are many people who enjoy the effects of THC, anyone expecting to have the benefits of CBD will see a completely different outcome. Many users consumed a large amount thinking that it was the CBD that they are used to. These cases are extremely unfortunate and indicate the very real need for adequate and thorough third-party laboratory testing of all cannabis products. Additionally, those who handle cannabis products must be extremely careful with labeling based on what happened to Curaleaf.

Curaleaf acquired Portland-based company Cura Cannabis, also known as Select, in 2019. It sold hundreds of mislabeled products through Oregon retailers over the past year.

The slip-up became apparent when unsuspecting consumers – some of whom had never used marijuana before – experienced extreme symptoms of marijuana use. The product labeled as CBD actually contained an extremely high dose of THC, many times the amount that recreational marijuana users normally consume.

Oregon recalled both products in September at the request of Oregon regulators. Curaleaf has announced that it has changed its manufacturing process to avoid similar problems in the future.