Brownies and Lozenges: NJ Issues Guidelines for Edible Medical Marijuana Products

Are you a registered medical marijuana patient in Montclair?

Good news… you may soon be able to get lozenges, brownies and other edible forms of cannabis directly from your local dispensary.

On March 10, more than five years after lawmakers approved medical marijuana in New Jersey, the state Department of Health issued guidelines for the production of edible medical cannabis products.

These new rules may change the way the state’s 4,098 registered patients ingest their medication.

On March 10, the DOH issued a 12-page booklet explaining the new regulations to the state’s three operational Alternative Treatment Centers, which are located in Montclair, Woodbridge and Egg Harbor Township.

According to the guidelines, dispensaries can begin the production and distribution of edibles as soon as they demonstrate that they can follow proper manufacturing standards to DOH officials.

“The purpose of these standards is to ensure that the products are safe, sanitary and clearly labeled with amounts of all ingredients,” DOH Director of Communications Donna Leusner told Patch.

“Patients will benefit from a manufacturing practice that is sanitary and safe and produces products with consistent strength, quality, purity and packaging. Many patients who participate in the program have compromised immune systems, and ensuring sanitary conditions in the manufacturing process will help to prevent contamination.”

Other standards cited in the guidelines include:

• Training for dispensary staff involved in the manufacturing process
• Manufacturing regulations such as lighting, ventilation and storage
• Establishment of quality control
• Creation of expiration dates and dosages for edible cannabis products
• Correct labeling of ingredients

PATIENT REACTIONS

Local medical marijuana advocates told Patch that they were happy to hear about the issuance of the guidelines, but criticized the state for taking so long to roll them out.

Evan Nison, executive director of the New Jersey chapter of National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), said that for sick patients, “edibles” can sometimes be the best method of ingestion.

“Although it’s regrettable the state took so long to recognize this, any positive step towards allowing safe access is a welcomed one,” said Nison. “It would be great for patients to be able to buy edibles instead of having the burden of making them themselves.”

Still, Nison told Patch that there is still a lot that needs to be improved with the medical marijuana program in New Jersey.

“One of the most important next steps that could be taken is allowing those suffering from PTSD and other illnesses to be included in the program. Marijuana has been shown to be an effective medication for many serious illnesses, and we shouldn’t be limiting it to so few residents.”

Ken Wolski, executive director of Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey, told Patch that there continue to be unacceptable delays in every aspect of New Jersey’s medicinal marijuana Program, including the state’s issuing of guidelines to permit edible marijuana products.

“The regulations that were promulgated by the Department of Health in 2011 allowed for marijuana lozenges and transdermal patches in New Jersey, but neither one of these products has been available here in the past four years,” Wolski said. “There was no need for New Jersey officials to reinvent the wheel by laboring over this issue.”

Wolski stated that edible marijuana products are already safely and effectively manufactured in other states and foreign countries.

“The technology is far from rocket science,” he said.

Photo caption: Edible medical marijuana products such as this cannabis-infused “gummy” candy may see production in New Jersey under recently issued state Department of Health guidelines.

Send news tips and releases to eric.kiefer@patch.com