New Regulations On Pot Edibles Designed To Protect Children, Adults

DENVER (CBS4)- New regulations on pot edibles go into effect on Sunday. Those regulations are designed to protect children and warn adults about the potency of marijuana edibles.

The law is being put in place by the Colorado Department of Revenue. The agency is hoping to prevent problems that have put Colorado's budding retail pot industry under scrutiny.

Last year an African student studying in Wyoming, Levi Thamba, died after eating an entire marijuana-infused cookie and jumping off a hotel balcony. There have also been several cases of children mistaking pot for candy.

That means some changes for edibles including placing marijuana-infused candy and baked goods in childproof packaging. Each individual square of chocolate must be marked according to how potent it is.

At The Incredibles edibles shop, they mark each square of chocolate with a number "10" to indicate 10 milligrams of THC, the psychoactive ingredient of marijuana. Ten is the standard serving.

In the past the chocolate didn't have to indicate the amount of THC in each bar.

"Some of them are in line with what the industry feels will improve safety out there. Others seem like overkill but we are happy to do it," said Incredibles spokesman Bob Eschino.

Some clerks working at retail pot shops had been recommending much more which could cause some issues with those who had not had much experience with edibles.

Now edible packaging contains warnings to eat only a small amount and then wait before eating more.

"So it says wait 45 minutes, so when you eat this, wait 45 minutes to see how it affects you and then you can continue with another dose if you really wanted to," said Sweat Leaf spokeswoman Elizabeth Dekhtyaryuk.

A variety of the marijuana-infused products, including drinks, cookies and candies come in single servings.

"We just want to educate people that five mg is a good serving, not too much, not over the top... make it safe," said Dekhtyaryuk.

This is the first step in regulation for the edibles industry.