Disposal and Remediation Options for Noncompliant Cannabis

September 10, 2021

With the preharvest sampling season among us, the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development’s (MDARD) Pesticide and Plant Pest Management Division is reminding hemp growers of the options available should their hemp lot be tested and found to have a noncompliant THC level.

After an MDARD inspector samples your hemp lots (see preharvest sampling process), you will receive an email, sent to the business email address you provided on your grower registration application, from MDARD-IndustrialHempLab@michigan.gov.  The email will contain an attachment with your hemp test results containing one page of test results for each lot sampled. 

Test results will list the grower’s registration number, variety, sample date, and GIS coordinates for each lot, along with total CBD and total THC results.  A compliant lot will have results formatted like this:

A noncompliant lot will have THC results in red and be followed by instructions on how to find information about disposal and remediation:

At this time, MDARD’s Geagley Laboratory has a measurement of uncertainty for their THC testing process of 0.06, meaning a compliant sample could have up to 0.36 percent total THC.  If lab testing shows THC levels at or below the acceptable THC level, the grower must harvest the compliant lots within 30 days of the sample being collected.

If lab testing reveals THC levels are not compliant, the grower must dispose of or remediate the noncompliant lots within 30 days:

1. Disposal – the grower must notify MDARD using the online Grower's Intent to Dispose form at least 48 hours prior to disposal. Please review the requirements for notification prior to disposal and reporting/recordkeeping after disposal, described in MDARD’s technical bulletin on Disposal of Noncompliant Hemp.
2. Remediation – the grower must notify MDARD no later than 20 days before the anticipated remediation date using the online Request for Industrial Hemp Preharvest OR Remediation Sampling Please review the requirements for notification, remediated lot sampling, and recordkeeping described in MDARD’s technical bulletin on Remediation of Noncompliant Hemp.

A diagram showing the disposal and remediation processes is available.  If you have any questions, please visit www.Michigan.gov/IndustrialHemp, email MDARD-Industrialhemp@michigan.gov, or phone 800-2929-3939 or your district plant health inspector. 

If you know of others who are interested in receiving industrial hemp program updates, please direct them to www.michigan.gov/industrialhemp; there is an enrollment link near the top.  

Please do not reply to this email as it is for outgoing messages only.