BILLINGS — Every cannabis consumer hopes the products they buy from their local retailer is all natural and authentic.
It's why a protest was held outside of Wild West Wellness on Saturday in the Billings Heights after the Montana Department of Revenue's Cannabis Control Division (CCD) released a report.
According to the CCD, Wild West Wellness is an unlicensed and unregulated dispensary that sells synthetic marijuana products which is illegal in the state of Montana.
It was on July 4 when Kayla Allen and Lori Cole visited Wild West Wellness in Billings.
"I had gotten so physically ill from it, that I wasn't able to get out of bed the next day. I had a massive headache. I was puking a lot," says Allen.
- Assault victim remains hospitalized
- GFPD responds to CMR High School
- Applestem Corn Maze set to open
- Daydream Boutique now in downtown GF
Allen and Cole both work in the marijuana industry, and have used cannabis for several years.
Allen says the only other time she has experienced anything similar, was after consuming synthetic cannabis.
"Being a user, a pretty steady user, for the last six, seven years, I've never really had an issues with this, besides smoking Delta-8, specifically," Allen said.
"I never expected it to not be real. Because, I didn't think that would happen here, with all the laws and stuff," Cole said.
That's exactly what happened. Since February, the Cannabis Control Division has been periodically testing products from Wild West Wellness, and determined the dispensary was selling synthetic products marketed as the real thing.
"HHC (Hexahydrocannabinol) is a cannabinoid that is only made synthetically. It does not happen naturally, or occur naturally, in marijuana," says Kristan Barbour, the Administrator with Montana's Cannabis Control Division.
Barbour says investigators found that at least four products sold at Wild West Wellness contained HHC and high levels of Delta-8.
Although Delta-8 is naturally occurring, Barbour says that when levels are extremely high, it is likely unnatural.
"Synthetic is really where we focus in on Delta-8 and Delta-10. Those tend to be increased levels of THC or cannabinoids that indicate that there is a synthetic material that created those products," she said.
MTN found that WWW is able to operate without a business license through a legal loophole.
According to Barbour, it's a legal loophole due to the 2018 Farm Bill. The bill states that if the dry weight content of the product is under 0.3%, it can be classified as a hemp product, which can be legally sold in Montana without a marijuana license.
"The Farm Bill of 2018 is what created the loophole for these hemp products to become intoxicating. They did this on a 0.3% dry weight basis, and that's where people started to concentrate these products into milligrams that are higher dosages," Barbour said.
The CCD states that WWW is an unlicensed, unregulated dispensary that sells synthetic products. On Friday, the CCD served the business with a cease and desist order, ordering the business to stop selling illicit products.
MTN contacted WWW. The owners declined an in-person, on the record interview.
They did give a statement which reads, "Wild West Wellness sells completely, all natural, cannabis products. All of our products are completed tested, and there are zero synthetics."
According to the CCD, this is false.
The CCD said, "(We) do not recognize this business as a licensed and regulated business to sell marijuana in the state of Montana."
Even so, WWW continues to operate. Allen and Cole say it's only a matter of time until someone else gets sick, or worse.
"It should never come down to a death to be heard. It shouldn't," said Allen.
"When someone comes in and gives you, your neighborhood, your community, fake stuff and makes them sick, that's real ugly on the marijuana business," says Cole.
The investigation with the CCD is still ongoing. The department says they are ready to take the "next steps" if the cease and desist order is not followed.
Visit the CCD's website for more information, or see which dispensaries are regulated by the CCD, by visiting this website.
Wild West Wellness also has shops in Great Falls, Helena, and Bozeman.
