Kasson liquor store, tobacco shop, caught selling THC edibles against state rules

There are two businesses in the city of Kasson currently selling hemp-derived THC edibles, and both stores, including the city-owned liquor store, were selling products that violated the state’s standards, during a recent educational visit, according to Police Chief Josh Hanson.

THC, which is the psychoactive ingredient contained in cannabis, became legal in 2022, following the passage of the state’s Farm Bill, and then in 2023, legislators clarified the rules making it so the products would be limited to five milligrams of THC per serving and 50 milligrams per package. To comply with federal law, the products also need to contain 0.3% THC or less.

According to Hanson, during the educational compliance checks the police department found “one edible product at the Kasson (Tobacco) Shop that did not have a QR code that provided a link to the lab report.”

“Staff at the Tobacco shop were advised to contact their vendor to correct the problem,” the memo stated.

At the Kasson Liquor Store, Hanson wrote “we found one edible product that contained about 55 mg of total THC in the package when we examined the lab report.”

“The Liquor store manager called the manufacturer and the manufacturer looked at the lab reports and determined they had made an error and asked the store to pull the product from the shelf,” Hanson wrote.

Hanson, in a monthly report to the city council explained there were violations found during recent educational visits, however, the details were murky in regard to who committed the violation, or what took place.

No discussion took place during the city council meeting, last week.

In an email to Liquor Store Manager Cathy Pletta asking if the memo was in regards to the liquor store she wrote “The Hemp-Derived Cannabinoid Product Inspector was in the liquor store recently, and we are 100% compliant.”

‘No Problems with Businesses’

As part of a previous story written by the Dodge County Independent, the police department was asked about compliance checks in town.

In an email response from Hanson on May 28, a week after the education compliance checks, he wrote “We have done educational compliance checks and have not had any problems with the businesses selling THC products.”

Asked about the discrepancy, Hanson said “These were educational compliance checks, and we did not take enforcement action or document the products found out of compliance.”