Marijuana cookies to hit Washington outlets but cannabis lollies are banned

Cookies and brownies laced with marijuana can go on sale in shops across Washington state after new rules were passed. Photograph: Erich Schlegel/Corbis

Marijuana stores in Washington state can sell marijuana in cookies, brownies and other baked goods but not in candies, lollipops or food items that might appeal to children, newly released rules stipulate.

Washington became the second US state to allow recreational sales of marijuana to adults on 8 July, when its first retail stores opened under a heavily regulated and taxed system approved by voters in 2012.

The state’s Liquor Control Board, which regulates the fledgling sector, published guidelines this week for the packaging and labelling of marijuana edibles. They prohibit any products, labels or packaging designed to be appealing to children, including lollipops and suckers, gummy candy and jelly beans. Edibles must be tested for potency and to ensure that the marijuana derivatives are spread evenly throughout the product.

Washington’s move to allow recreational sales comes amid a broader trend of liberalisation in the US. Recreational sales began in Colorado on 1 January.

So far, Washington state regulators have issued 25 licences to retailers and are still processing more than 300 others.

That has led to concerns about shortages. The first and only recreational marijuana shop to open in Seattle ran out of stock only three days after opening. Last week a Seattle-based company that makes marijuana-infused drinks and candies became the first business in the state to be approved, but it was not clear when the first products will hit shelves.

In Colorado, authorities ordered a recall of products made by the Denver-based company, At Home Baked, which was using a regular clothes washing machine to generate the cold water and centrifugal force needed to make “bubble hash”, a marijuana concentrate.

The Public Health Inspections division of the Denver Department of Public Health said it ordered the business to stop using the washing machine because it did not meet minimum sanitation standards.

Among the products recalled on Thursday were marijuana-infused brownies, candies and rice-crispy treats.

Marijuana cookies to hit Washington outlets but cannabis lollies are banned

Chief health-related officer criticises alcohol delivers in supermarkets, outlets and bars

England’s chief medical officer ideas to publish new advice on the optimum quantity of alcohol it is risk-free to eat. Photograph: David Cheskin/PA

England’s chief health care officer has criticised “irresponsible” supermarkets, shops and bars for enticing consumers to purchase “ever greater quantities of alcohol”, and signalled a continuing battle with ministers in excess of the need for minimum unit pricing.

Dame Sally Davies strategies to publish new advice on the optimum amount of alcohol it is safe to consume within the subsequent 12 months. She also repeated warnings that a “sugar tax” could have to be launched if the food business does not ramp up voluntary moves to curb added sugar in merchandise.

Davies, the principal medical adviser for the Uk government, has also condemned the “unacceptably substantial relative” threat associated with strolling or cycling, saying the chance of death per kilometre is 17 instances greater for these forms of “energetic travel” than going the very same distance by vehicle.

Her annual report, laden with political challenges, signifies frustration at ministers’ shelving last summer of minimum unit pricing for alcohol in England. A program for it to be introduced by the Scottish government is currently being legally challenged by the drinks industry.

Davies welcomes the coalition government’s move to avoid alcohol becoming sold below the value of duty plus VAT from subsequent week, which means an ordinary 440ml can of beer or lager are not able to be sold beneath 50p, whilst there are “floor rates” for other drinks. But she adds: “I note that modelled data suggests that charging a minimal of 45p per unit of alcohol need to be a lot more effective in reducing premature deaths.”

Davies says that in spite of clear risks to well being and society, “merchants proceed to sell alcohol using strategies which I take into account to be irresponsible”. She adds: “I deplore the strategies merchants use to entice consumers to acquire ever-higher quantities of alcohol.” These include multi-purchase gives, promoting alcohol at below cost value and the redefining of “modest glasses of wine” by bars and eating places, omitting from menus the 125ml measure which they are legally obliged to provide.”

The higher degree of alcohol advertising all around football matches broadcast on Television is also notably concerning due to the fact of the number of youngsters who view, said Davies.

On combating obesity, Davies stated she had long been concerned that the vogue market presented being underweight as an “perfect” aim.

“Yet I am increasingly concerned that society may be normalising becoming obese,” she added.

“For example: larger mannequins are becoming introduced into clothes shops ‘size inflation’ implies that clothes with the identical dimension label have grow to be more substantial in latest decades and information stories about the overweight typically feature photographs of severely obese individuals, which are unrepresentative of the bulk of the obese population.”

If producers failed to deliver on guarantees to cut added sugar, then “we, as a society, may need to have to take into account the public wellness benefits that could be derived from a regulation such as a ‘sugar tax’”, she mentioned. And though Davies was pleased there had been some progress by the food market to voluntarily reduce the quantity of salt in foods, there was far further to go, she stated.

Chief health-related officer criticises alcohol delivers in supermarkets, outlets and bars