I Found a Vape Pen at My Son’s School. Finding Out What Was Inside Was a Lot Harder.
By Doug Henry for Mother Jones
One seller claims Gold Coast Clear is “working hard to keep their customers safe,” and that “these verified cartridges have undergone various lab tests approved by CannaSafe.” Of course, that language doesn’t say they were actually tested by CannaSafe. Indeed, that lab closed in 2022, largely, according to former president Antonio Frazier, because “lab shopping” clients went elsewhere seeking more positive results.
Frazier, a board member at the pro–cannabinoid regulation group Americans for Safe Access, is not surprised to hear that what he describes as a “trap brand” tried to appear credible by using CannaSafe’s name. (Frazier used the word “trap” not to connote deception, but to call to mind harder, illegal drug markets—i.e., “trap house.”) “It’s not the first time,” he says, recounting that CannaSafe traced sites making false claims about their tests to Russia and China. “It’s hard to hold anyone accountable when they’re an illegal business to begin with,” he says.
Share this page
