DENVER (AP) — Two marijuana users in Colorado filed a lawsuit Monday against a pot business they said used an unhealthy pesticide to grow their weed — a case that lawyers say is the first product liability claim in the nation involving the legal marijuana industry.
The case underscores disagreement over what chemicals should be allowed in the cultivation of pot and leaves the plaintiffs facing a dilemma: The U.S. government still regards almost all marijuana as an illicit drug and there are no federal safety guidelines for growing it.
The state of Colorado has approved a list of pesticides that are acceptable to grow pot, but it's far from complete and leaves out several pesticides that are commonly used on both food and tobacco.
The lawsuit filed in state court targets use of a fungicide called Eagle 20 EW by a Denver-based pot company called LivWell, where authorities quarantined thousands of plants earlier this year, saying they had been treated with the pesticide.
Eagle 20 EW is commonly used on grapes and hops but can become dangerous when heated and is banned for use on tobacco. No research exists on whether the fungicide is safe to use on pot that will be eaten.
