G3 Labs, LLC in Las Vegas has had their license to operate suspended by the Nevada Department of Taxation. The Department of Agriculture did not elaborate on why the cannabis lab testing facility was shut down, but it did shock the Las Vegas cannabis community.
The Nevada Department of Taxation sent a clear message to other licensed registered medical marijuana companies and recreational weed businesses in Nevada with the license suspension of G3 Labs. A regulated marijuana market needs strict protocols, especially when it comes to lab testing cannabis. The last thing that Nevada wants is a market similar to California where more than 85{f1d755e3d686d84b3fba3fb9da3bc25d6eb08724c18385fd50146d58c836a6dd} of cultivators are not producing clean, legal cannabis.
As of now, there have not been any product recalls related to G3 Labs license suspension, but as more details emerge TNMN will update our report.
The Department of Taxation suspended the license of G3 Labs LLC, at 3220 Procyon St., on Aug. 24, department spokeswoman Stephanie Klapstein said.
The Nevada Department of Agriculture tested marijuana samples from the lab but determined that no product recalls will be necessary, Klapstein said.
“Based on all the information we’ve gathered through the investigation, we’re working with the licensee to address the issues and get them back into compliance,” Klapstein said. “Until then, their license will remain suspended, and they cannot operate.”
Klapstein said she could provide no other details about why the lab was suspended.
State law requires cannabis companies to have samples of their products tested by licensed independent laboratories. Those labs screen for toxic metals, fungi and pesticides, and they verify the potency of marijuana products to ensure consistency.
G3 is the first marijuana business in Nevada to have its license suspended since recreational marijuana possession became legal Jan. 1. Tax Department Director Deonne Contine said this shows that the state is diligent in regulating the marijuana industry.
“This is exactly what we were tasked with doing — regulating marijuana businesses to make sure everyone is complying with the laws and rules,” Contine said. “Most of the public focus up to this point has been on who’s getting licensed, but enforcement is a critical part of our work as regulators, and it’s central to the tightly regulated industry the governor has called for.”
Essence Dispensaries CEO Armen Yemenidjian said he was “shocked” when he heard the news.
“I would have never guessed that he would be suspended,” Yemenidjian said. “Maybe this is all a misunderstanding and it will work out. But I just don’t know.”