A Pueblo County marijuana company called Staycon has recalled 49 vape products, including its Grape Gorilla and Maui Wowie lines, after a Denver laboratory detected methylene chloride, a chemical that can cause cancer. The recall notice reportedly attributed the contamination to a botanically-derived flavoring compound, even as Colorado's Marijuana Enforcement Division has not issued a consumer alert about the problem and state regulators continue to delay the rollout of expanded testing rules meant to catch exactly this kind of contamination.
A Lab Discovery That Led to a Recall
According to the Denver Gazette, Bona Fides Laboratory, based in Denver, detected methylene chloride in Staycon products in August while conducting routine testing for pesticides and mold. David Mathis notified both Staycon and Colorado officials about the detected solvent, and he has since criticized state regulators for delaying expanded testing rules, saying his company had been ready to conduct expanded screening since the start of July. Mathis has also asked how many untested samples containing contaminants may have already reached the public.
Staycon, which does business as Craft and is based in Pueblo County, warned dispensaries about the recall but has not responded to questions about it, the Gazette's reporting notes. Kyle Boyd said the Marijuana Enforcement Division does not comment on ongoing investigations, leaving the scope of the state's response largely unclear.
Methylene Chloride Is Banned — But Enforcement Has Lagged
Colorado state law prohibits marijuana manufacturers from using methylene chloride and separately bans the chemical conversion of hemp into THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana. Methylene chloride can be used to cheaply synthesize hemp into THC, which is part of why regulators treat its presence as a red flag rather than a routine lab hiccup.
The state's testing rule is designed to cover methylene chloride along with 30 other solvents, and Colorado's testing standards are meant to align with requirements in 24 of the 43 states that regulate marijuana markets. But Colorado had planned to implement the new testing procedures in July, and that rollout was delayed after the state's public health department told the Marijuana Enforcement Division it needed more time to review labs and recommend certification. The Marijuana Enforcement Division has said implementation will now begin at the end of September.
Regulators Weakened Sampling Requirements Before the Delay
Colorado regulators considered overhauling sampling rules back in January, but they ultimately backed down from requiring laboratory personnel to collect the samples themselves, after top manufacturers said the requirement would be too expensive. Under the current system, manufacturers still choose both the labs that conduct testing and the samples those labs test — a structure critics say leaves room for contaminated batches to slip through undetected. Expanded testing procedures, once implemented, would be designed to detect methylene chloride and other health-risk solvents more reliably.
This isn't the first time Staycon has faced scrutiny. A third-party laboratory hired by competitor Mammoth Farms determined in 2024 that a Staycon vape, along with products from two other brands, had been manufactured from synthetic hemp rather than true marijuana. Justin Trouard, who provided those 2024 test results, said he suspected Staycon was illegally synthesizing hemp and selling it as marijuana; he sent Staycon a cease-and-desist notice and met with the Marijuana Enforcement Division to discuss the findings. Jeffrey Whitney has denied the allegation that Staycon products were manufactured from synthetic hemp.
A Pattern Regulators Have Acknowledged Before
The current recall follows a broader pattern flagged earlier this year. As the Gazette reported in April, Colorado regulators said they had identified evidence that marijuana businesses were using illicit practices and banned methods to manufacture products, and pledged to crack down on companies that illegally substitute cheaper, potentially hazardous hemp products for marijuana. Manufacturers, the outlet reported, rely on toxic and potentially hazardous chemicals to convert non-intoxicating CBD found in hemp into THC. The Marijuana Enforcement Division also said companies had misreported bulk marijuana sales in the state's seed-to-sale tracking system, in some cases at prices as low as $1 a pound for unprocessed material.
That April report also detailed a 2024 case in which state investigators found that a popular brand of marijuana vapes sold in dispensaries was actually hemp-derived and contaminated with methylene chloride; the manufacturer, Ware Hause, surrendered its marijuana license as a result. Regulators warned that companies caught passing off hemp or other illicit material as marijuana could face immediate product embargo, license suspension or revocation, significant monetary penalties, and referral to law enforcement.
Federal Rules Around the Chemical Remain Unsettled
The Environmental Protection Agency banned methylene chloride for most uses in 2024, after its risk evaluation concluded the chemical presents an unreasonable risk of injury to health, according to the EPA. That risk-management rule was finalized in April 2024 to protect people from what the agency described as the chemical's unreasonable risk, per the EPA's risk evaluation. This September, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit struck down the EPA's methylene chloride ban and sent the matter back to the agency for further review, according to the Gazette's reporting — though Colorado's own prohibition on the chemical in marijuana manufacturing remains separate from federal rulemaking.
The recall also arrives amid broader reporting on the state's regulatory gaps. The Denver Gazette and ProPublica have reported that Colorado regulatory loopholes have allowed contaminated marijuana products to remain available to consumers, a dynamic that critics like Mathis argue is being repeated with Staycon's delayed detection. For now, dispensaries have been notified directly by Staycon, but state regulators have not issued any public-facing alert, leaving consumers largely reliant on the company's own outreach and ongoing news coverage to learn their vapes may be affected.
