A Massachusetts marijuana testing facility is in hot water after being accused of throwing usable marijuana into an unlocked dumpster. And on top of that, local police found hundreds of vials with extracted cannabis from the lab — one that provides services for almost the entire state’s medical cannabis retailers.
The facility, MCR Labs, agreed to pay a $225,000 fine for improper disposal, and admitted that an employee put cannabis waste into the dumpster over the course of four days in January 2019, when Framingham Police responded to the location while investigating a report of suspicious activity near the dumpster, and found a car parked on the curb nearby.
MCR Labs is located 20 miles west of Boston in Framingham, Mass. The facility was one of the first two labs approved by the state’s Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) to test products for retailers operating in the state’s recently legalized recreational market.
While investigating the dumpster fiasco, the commission found that the lab’s records did not properly document the disposal of 7,520 samples of marijuana.
The mayor sent a letter to the CCC and members of the commission, alleging the company violated regulations on cannabis waste disposal, and asked for an investigation. Members of the commission spent the day at the MCR Labs location with lab administrators to discuss the disposal complaint. After the meeting, MCR Labs agreed to update disposal policies and procedures in order to ensure there were no further issues regarding proper disposal. MCR Labs also agreed to hire a compliance manager in addition to facility and security managers.
MCR President Michael Kahn released a statement attesting that the lab has implemented improved protocols for waste disposal that will comply with regulations. The company will pay the fine over a six-month period in instalments.
