Cannabis Control Division

NM Cannabis regulators lift cease and desist order from producer
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A New Mexico cannabis company that was ordered to cease operations at one of its Santa Fe facilities can now resume its operation.
According to a letter from Cannabis Control Division Director Kristen Thomson to cannabis company Sacred Garden, state regulators lifted a previously issued cease and desist order on April 27.
“Sacred Garden has remedied, or has initiated appropriate plans to remedy, all violations cited by the CCD related to imminent hazards to public health and to Sacred Garden employees,” Thomson wrote.
The cease and desist order was issued by the Cannabis Control Division on March 24, after two reported instances of mold found on products from Sacred Garden and division staff reportedly found conditions that would pose a risk to the public at the Santa Fe facility.
Days after the Cannabis Control Division issued the cease and desist letter to Sacred Garden, the cannabis producer filed a request for an injunction to counter the division’s order. Initially, a Santa Fe state district judge ordered the division to allow Sacred Garden to sell manufactured products, such as extracts and edible products, until the Santa Fe facility was deemed safe to fully reopen. In a subsequent hearing, the judge criticized the Cannabis Control Division for not articulating a clear path to compliance. Sacred Garden’s lawyer accused the division of adding additional requirements to remove the cease and desist order between hearings.
During the initial hearing, the lawyer for the division said an inspector could go back to the Sacred Garden facility in a week to verify the safety issues had been fixed. But during the next hearing, the division’s attorney said Sacred Garden would need to find an air quality specialist to ensure there were no excessive mold spores in the facility.
The judge gave the Cannabis Control Division about a week to come up with and complete a testing regime that would produce results by last week.