[Previously in Cannabuzz: Josh was honored to be chosen as a judge for the famous High Times Cannabis Cupâuntil he discovered what heâd be judging: vape pens from a mysterious source.âeds.]
As a judge for the High Times Oregon Cannabis Cup, I was assigned âvape cartridgesâ as my product to review. Normally, that would have been greatâbut in light of what at the time was the still evolving EVALI (E-cigarette Vaping Associated Lung Injury) crisis, naturally I had concerns.
A month prior to picking up my judgeâs kit, I wrote about how state regulators had recently announced that the suspected culprit, vitamin E acetate, wasnât a banned âundisclosed agentâ and may be present in some Oregon vape carts. As OLCC Executive Director Steve Marks said, âMy worry is that some of these folks may have gone around and put vitamin E in their products that we are unaware of.... If itâs in our products, itâs out there and we donât have a clear way to know which ones it may or may not be in.â At the same time, Oregon Health Authority reported that one of the EVALI victims who had died reportedly purchased THC carts from at least one licensed Oregon dispensary.
The High Times judgeâs kit contained 10 carts, filled with .5 to 1 gram of oil, all packaged as if ready for sale. This was in no way the vastly preferred âblind judgingâ style, wherein all identifying details about the product are removed (including its name, producer, etc.), thereby insuring the judge wonât be influenced by any existing biases, good or bad.
I asked budtenders at the dispensary where I picked up my kit if any of the carts contained vitamin E. They were simply handling the distribution of the kits, so they didnât know. The kit had a few brands Iâd heard of, but most were kinds that I had never tried or seen.
I have a friend who owns a large dispensary that compiled a lengthy list of âgood cartsââwith verified ingredients and producersâso he graciously agreed to look at the ones I was given and determine if they were listed. âWow,â he replied. âWe actually carry none of these brands.â He also noted there was one brand he had never heard of eitherâthat we will call, for the purposes of this article, âBrand X.â
I emailed High Times and requested confirmation that ânone of these carts contain the thickening agent Vitamin E acetate.â I didnât receive a reply, so I asked again through the website in which judgesâ ballots are submitted. Again, no reply.
I began reaching out directly to producers of the carts to ask if they used Vitamin E. I received confirmation that they didnât, but couldnât find any info for âBrand X.â My friend said the brand name didnât exist in METRC, the stateâs cannabis products tracking system, but using the license number, he determined their legal business name and phone number. Multiple calls to this number went unanswered.
On October 24, I emailed High Times again and asked if they could provide a contact at Brand X to âconfirm it was free of vitamin E,â resulting in this telling exchange:
High Times: Everything is OLCC certified and passes the test in METRC.
Me: That wasnât the question, but thanks.
High Times: We donât give our competitor info. Thanks.
Well, no need to âgive it out,â itâs all on the packaging that the carts are inâsave for âBrand X.â I was astounded at the lack of awareness or concern High Times was showing toward the health and safety of their judges.
The owner of the Cupâs venue offered to guest list me, and I arrived to find a scattering of booths and a few attendees milling about. I recognized a half dozen plus, all whom were associated with brands competing in the Cup. Stepping outside, I joined a crowd seemingly comprised of mostly other contestants.
The MC announced several times how consumption of any kind, including vaping, was strictly forbidden, and could result in your expulsion. Tickets are $80+ to a cannabis event where one isnât allowed to smoke? Cool.
Eventually winners were announced, the crowd emptied out, and the headliner played to a smaller audience than they deserved.
Those who won were worthy of the honors, and I hope it boosts their sales. But as a judge and attendee, this event came off as a crass cash grabâone that embodied none of the spirit of the original Cups. High Times has some great writers, but do yourself a favorâskip the Cup.