Lawsuit expanded against N.B. marijuana producer
Trailer Park Boys partnered with company for branded product
A New Brunswick-based medical marijuana producer in partnership with both the provincial government and the Trailer Park Boys has had a lawsuit against it expanded to include possible health effects.
A class action suit was filed on March 3 against Health Canadacertified medical cannabis producer Organigram Inc. for containing unauthorized pesticides.
Halifax- based injury lawyer Ray Wagner, who is representing the plaintiffs, told The Chronicle Herald the suit was originally economic in nature – essentially to return to clients the money they paid for the product, which was recalled – but last month it was expanded to take into account the health impacts of using the tainted product.
Now Organigram is being sued for punitive damages for falsely advertising its product as organic, as well as for personal harm.
Wagner said more than 100 people, including a number of Nova Scotians, have contacted him about the case and he’s expecting more to sign on as time goes on. He said he doesn’t know what the value of the claim will be but said the damages could be quite significant.
“Certainly we’re ( beyond) seven figures; how much it’s too early to tell at this moment,” he said.
Organigram is one of the region’s major producers of medical cannabis and is one of three producers that has signed on with the government of New Brunswick to supply at least five million grams of recreational marijuana per year.
Last November the company announced it had partnered with the Trailer Park Boys to develop a line of branded marijuana products in preparation for the legalization of recreational marijuana.
There were large-scale recalls of Organigram’s products produced between Feb. 1 and Dec. 16, 2016 after they tested positive for myclobutanil and/or bifenazate, both unauthorized pesticides under medical cannabis regulations.
On Jan. 9 of this year, Organigram initiated a voluntary Type II recall after further testing that identified additional product containing the pesticides, and it expanded the recall to include all products produced between Feb. 1 and Dec. 16, 2016.
A Type II recall refers to a situation in which the use of or exposure to a product may cause temporary adverse health consequences, or where the probability of serious adverse health consequences is remote. The previous recall was a Type III, which refers to a situation in which the use of or exposure to a product is not likely to cause any adverse health consequences.
Health Canada has received at least one adverse reaction report related to Organigram’s products, according to Wagner, and the law firm itself has received several reports from clients of negative health effects such as vomiting, dizziness and nausea that began after consuming the Organigram’s products.
Bifenazate is considered toxic, and myclobutanil produces hydrogen cyanide when combusted.
In March, Health Canada issued a news release saying analysis of the recalled cannabis products show that the trace levels of myclobutanil that were present would have produced a negligible amount of additional hydrogen cyanide upon combustion, in comparison to the levels already produced by marijuana alone. Specifically, the level of cyanide from the burning of myclobutanil found on the cannabis samples was more than 1,000 times lower than the cyanide in cannabis smoke alone, and is 500 times below the acceptable level established by the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
As such, the risk of serious adverse health consequences resulting from the inhalation of combusted myclobutanil in the recalled cannabis products was determined by Health Canada to be low.
At the time, Health Canada told the media that it was satisfied by the measures taken by the company, which included strengthening monitoring, enhancing internal operating procedures, and expanding their product testing regimes.
Organigram had their organic certification revoked earlier this year but is in the process of recertification.
The case is going to court for a certification motion on June 18, 2018. If the case is certified, it will proceed to a trial.
On Wednesday, the company told other media it was not commenting on ongoing litigation.