© Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK
(Amsterdam) – The Netherlands is well known for its approach to recreational marijuana. It led the way for other European nations, as well as the US, in changing attitudes toward the legal sale of cannabis — in a controlled fashion. But the push for pot has come with complications, and complaints about quality of life. For example, here in New York City, the stench of weed is all but ubiquitous on the streets of Manhattan. And parents have raised concerns about weed vapes and candies — which may appeal to children in an outsized way.
That problem reared its ugly head in the Netherlands recently, where candymaker Haribo was forced to recall gummy candies — because traces of THC (the active drug in marijuana) was detected. Long known for their cute and colorful gummy bears, Haribo recalled its Happy Cola gummies as a result of the contamination.
The Guardian reports that some people were sickened after consuming the gummies — including kids. They complained of dizziness mostly. A spokesperson for the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) in the Netherlands said it’s unclear what happened. “How the cannabis ended up in the sweets is still unknown” the rep told Dutch news agency ANP, adding “the police are investigating the matter further.”
Perhaps most troublingly, the candies were sold in legitimate Haribo packaging. Some illicit weed sellers have used imitation packaging, marketing their weed gummies to look like legitimate brands. In this case, it seems to have been a mistake from the company.
Haribo does not sell weed-infused products as a matter of course. But accidental contamination has happened in the past. Chantal Westerhoff, a spokesperson for Dutch police, said “we want to know exactly how it got into the candy and, of course, how the bags ended up in the store.”
