Jellies laced with cannabis which can be bought online have been described as “a sinister attempt to sell narcotics in the form of sweets” by Ireland’s food safety watchdog as it warned people not to consume such products under any circumstances.
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) said it was prompted to issue the warning after recent interceptions of edible products containing significant levels of the psychotropic cannabis component tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) by the Garda and Revenue’s Customs Service.
In at least one incident, sweets containing cannabis oil were consumed by a number of teenagers, one of whom subsequently suffered serious adverse health effects and needed hospital treatment.
In that instance the sweets are understood to have been bought online with the packaging carrying explicit warnings to eat the sweets cautiously and that a significant concentration of THC was present.
THC is the psychotropic cannabinoid found in cannabis plants which leads to a “euphoric high in people who consume it by smoking, vaping or eating,” the FSAI said.
It stressed THC was a controlled substance in Ireland with no tolerance level set in the Misuse of Drugs Act. In food THC was considered a contaminant, with no permitted threshold in the EU, the FSAI added.
“Sweets containing cannabis components are being sold online or by other means,” said the chief executive of the FSAI Dr Pamela Byrne. “THC is a toxic contaminant and should not be added to any food. They are dangerous, particularly for young people and those with prior health conditions who may consume them unwittingly.”
“This new development is a sinister attempt to sell narcotics in the form of sweets and those involved are obviously not concerned about the consequences of these products getting into the hands of vulnerable people like children who could consume these products unwittingly to the detriment of their health,” added Dr Byrne.
The FSAI is liaising with other Government agencies including the Health Service Executive, An Garda Síochána and Revenue’s Customs Service to detect and stop the import and sale of these dangerous products into Ireland.
