Med Watch! (MariTrust's ISS, Master Kush, and Northern Blues)

Hey guys, not sure if this is the best way to handle this, but I wanted to spread the word to as many MMJ patients as possible, so I figured the forums would be a good secondary route to our website.

Here's the basic story: KindReviews got some samples to review from MariTrust back in June that had mites on them (one of the worst cases we'd seen at that point... eggs, bugs, and visible webs everywhere), we returned the samples and (as is our normal process) suggested they pull them from their shelves and check into their grow. After that point, we hadn't reviewed anything else from them and had no further contact, but we just assumed that they had taken care of business and cleaned things up.

Well, we got an anonymous tip late last month that they were still selling the Northern Blues (one of the strains we returned in June), as well as a tip that a patient had purchased some mite-infested Master Kush. We got that sample from the patient and then went in anonymously to MariTrust and purchased grams of the Island Sweet Skunk (random strain to check) and some of the Northern Blues with the intent to inspect them.

We found far worse mite damage on these 3 samples than any we've ever seen out of 150+ we've scoped thus far... it was just absolutely covered with the things. It's the worst problem I've ever seen personally on finished product, and it was shocking to see that after we had already warned them and asked that the meds be pulled months ago. In this case, it appears to be a case of intentional disregard for medicine quality rather than an honest mistake, as it may have been the first time.

Check the full post on KindReviews with all the disgusting scope photos of the carnage if you're so inclined. I just wanted to get to get the word out in case anyone here is a MariTrust patient or was considering shopping there in the future. We're not out to smear anyone or harm any shops, but in this case we felt compelled to say something and this is a solid venue for spreading the word about something.

Apologies to the mods if this is against the ToS or something... trying to spread this info for the sake of MMJ patients and clean medicine.

As a patient, thank you for making this public. That MMC certainly isn't. Keep up the good work.

The "ghost mite" exoskeletons littered around were especially a trip... so gross. I hadn't seen those before (or at least didn't notice what they were). Practically had a farm going on these...

Nice to see 1284 and the $7 million they collected working so well.

Thanks for posting this.

My skin is crawling after seeing the photos. That is flat out egregious. Worst I've ever seen as well.

Thanks for the post. :thumbsup:

There is no excuse for this, glad I have never used their services & now never will

Gross. Forwarded to CDPHE/DoR so they can shut these assholes down.

Yikes !!! :eek: Thanks for the tip. :clap: Think I'll go out and purchase a 420 scope. :weedpoke:

Actually, I'd strongly recommend the Veho Discovery series... the 420 Scope is kind of garbage in my experience. I'd opt for the 200X model, which is what we captured all that scary shit with. The Celestron 150X model is what I use for MMJinColorado.com if you want to compare... it's easier to use and sturdier, but the Veho has better picture and that extra 50X, which makes a big difference when trying to spot mold...

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Originally Posted by MMJinColorado

Actually, I'd strongly recommend the Veho Discovery series... the 420 Scope is kind of garbage in my experience. I'd opt for the 200X model, which is what we captured all that scary shit with. The Celestron 150X model is what I use for MMJinColorado.com if you want to compare... it's easier to use and sturdier, but the Veho has better picture and that extra 50X, which makes a big difference when trying to spot mold...

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Okay, thanks for the tip.

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Originally Posted by MMJinColorado

Actually, I'd strongly recommend the Veho Discovery series... the 420 Scope is kind of garbage in my experience. I'd opt for the 200X model, which is what we captured all that scary shit with. The Celestron 150X model is what I use for MMJinColorado.com if you want to compare... it's easier to use and sturdier, but the Veho has better picture and that extra 50X, which makes a big difference when trying to spot mold...

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I'd like to buy a digital scope, these handheld microscopes hurt my eyes looking at crystals.

I realize there are some online, but I'd prefer to buy in person locally, and I'll gladly pay more to do so.

With that said, the only place I've found that sells an affordable scope is The Science Company, and their selection is limited.

Can you refer any local places that sell digital microscopes at 150-200x or more? Thanks again for what you're doing.

I believe that The Hemp Center sells Discovery scopes still... might check there.

Otherwise, I'd recommend J&R Electronics, as that's the cheapest I've seen online... they're only like $58 and you can use them for everything from this purpose to checking harvest timing and looking for pests on your live plants. Great picture quality on the Discovery series (you can use it for website pictures and whatnot if you're an MMC), we got some AMAZING shots of some never-before-seen stuff with our scope that we'll be sharing with the community very soon.

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Originally Posted by MMJinColorado

I believe that The Hemp Center sells Discovery scopes still... might check there.

Otherwise, I'd recommend J&R Electronics, as that's the cheapest I've seen online... they're only like $58 and you can use them for everything from this purpose to checking harvest timing and looking for pests on your live plants. Great picture quality on the Discovery series (you can use it for website pictures and whatnot if you're an MMC), we got some AMAZING shots of some never-before-seen stuff with our scope that we'll be sharing with the community very soon.

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Man, you're really earning good karma lately. THC has one left, she's checking on the price. As long as it's reasonable, I'll pick it up today. Been meaning to check out bluesky too, thanks a ton for the tip.

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Originally Posted by cologrower420

Man, you're really earning good karma lately. THC has one left, she's checking on the price. As long as it's reasonable, I'll pick it up today. Been meaning to check out bluesky too, thanks a ton for the tip.

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Glad I could help -- tell her to stock up on some more scopes, because they'll probably start selling a bunch of them soon haha...

If those pictures are enough to scare people into getting scopes of their own, we did our job... can't let shops get away with this sort of stuff anymore. If patients are checking everything and turning it back into them en masse, it will police itself and those types of shops will go out of business sooner than later.

Again, even the best shops have occasional problems with a harvest or even just a particular plant/strain, so it's important not to paint with a wide brush, saying a shop's "garbage" or "dirty" because you find something. At the same time, if you notice a trend or get a bad attitude when they're called on it, I'd advise shopping elsewhere, as it's probably an indication that they are aware of the problems and are trying to hide it. Mites won't hurt you, but mold can -- so if you see anything along those lines, I would definitely not smoke (and especially not vaporize, which is more dangerous with mold spores) it and try to get your money back.

Best of luck to everyone... scope your meds!

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Originally Posted by MMJinColorado

I believe that The Hemp Center sells Discovery scopes still... might check there.

Otherwise, I'd recommend J&R Electronics, as that's the cheapest I've seen online... they're only like $58 and you can use them for everything from this purpose to checking harvest timing and looking for pests on your live plants. Great picture quality on the Discovery series (you can use it for website pictures and whatnot if you're an MMC), we got some AMAZING shots of some never-before-seen stuff with our scope that we'll be sharing with the community very soon.

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The Hemp Center has the veho 200x, but it's $109 retail, and amazon is showing $68. The Science Company is showing the celestron 150x for $70.

Yeah, J&R was the cheapest I saw online, better than Amazon... I actually ordered another one for myself since the "company scope" is elsewhere. It was $59.99 including shipping,. but apparently they're out of stock at the moment (the 400X is out too). Hot commodity!

On the topic of the 400X, it works and is great for getting some super-close trichome pictures, but it's very tough to focus anything at that level and keep the scope steady. In short: good for looking and pictures, not that useful for finding pests...

I thought this was pretty funny.

This is from the Maritrust website (MariTrust > Home) in the section entitled "Clean and Safe" :

"All MariTrust medical cannabis is produced in a filtered, climate/quality controlled, self-contained nursery and cultivation center. Raw cannabis is finished, trimmed, and cured with the utmost attention to cleanliness, purity, detail, and aesthetic beautification. No product is rushed to market, and you will NEVER pay for wet buds (did you know that this can cost you up to 2X/eighth for the SAME amount of actual medicine!?). "

I laughed. And holy sh*t do these guys spam craigslist a lot. :thumbsup:

+1

good work. keep it up!

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Originally Posted by cologrower420

I'd like to buy a digital scope, these handheld microscopes hurt my eyes looking at crystals.

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Get a 30x Jeweler's Loupe. It's the easiest thing to view your plants with. [I've tried them all because my eyes are not what they used to be] Hold it an inch or so from your eye and it's super easy to see.

30x is all you really need for checking trichomes. Any more and you are just having a hard time focusing and holding still enough to see.

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Originally Posted by SoCoMMJ

Get a 30x Jeweler's Loupe. It's the easiest thing to view your plants with. [I've tried them all because my eyes are not what they used to be] Hold it an inch or so from your eye and it's super easy to see.

30x is all you really need for checking trichomes. Any more and you are just having a hard time focusing and holding still enough to see.

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Yeaaah, I mean those are okay for trichome head harvest timing type of stuff, but since the digital scopes also have a ~40X focal area, you can get that view easily as well as being able take pictures to log the data by day, etc. I dunno, it just seems like a waste to buy a jeweler's loupe that only performs one part of the task when a full-featured digital microscope with a camera and the capability to aid you in finding pests is only $60.

The picture-taking alone is worth it -- the big smiles you get when you zoom in on your harvest and see a field of perfectly-timed trichomes say it all. As a shop or a vendor/grower, it's an absolute no-brainer to me, especially if you're trying to show people that your product is clean and beautiful. Why more shops don't have scopes set up on TVs is beyond me...

A true 30x loupe is overkill. A 20x quadruplet is difficult to use inside without high powered lights and a stable platform. A 10x triplet jeweler's loupe of the kind gemologists use to examine interior flaws in diamonds is what is needed. Either a 10x or a 20x will allow you to examine trichromes very easily. I've used Bausch and Lomb in the past, but I think Belomo's loupes are as good and cost less. I never purchase any medicine without examining it under magnification, and neither should anyone else.

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Originally Posted by MMJinColorado

Yeaaah, I mean those are okay for trichome head harvest timing type of stuff, but since the digital scopes also have a ~40X focal area, you can get that view easily as well as being able take pictures to log the data by day, etc. I dunno, it just seems like a waste to buy a jeweler's loupe that only performs one part of the task when a full-featured digital microscope with a camera and the capability to aid you in finding pests is only $60.

The picture-taking alone is worth it -- the big smiles you get when you zoom in on your harvest and see a field of perfectly-timed trichomes say it all. As a shop or a vendor/grower, it's an absolute no-brainer to me, especially if you're trying to show people that your product is clean and beautiful. Why more shops don't have scopes set up on TVs is beyond me...

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What is the process you go through when you photograph your meds? Do you use outside lighting or what's on the scope? It seems that your pics are better quality than other MMC's that take pictures. Thanks.

Thank you Kind Reviews for providing the cannabis community with your "Med Watch" review. We believe cannabis centers should be held accountable for the medication they provide to patients. The detailed pictures showing mite damage and the effects caused on finished medicine stock will provide patients the education required for selecting quality medicine.
With that said MariTrust is under new management.
In recognition of quality control issues encountered during the months of June and July of 2010, the MariTrust team has implemented changes to the operation to ensure all products are of the highest quality. In addition to lab testing our strains, we will have a 200x zoom-high powered microscope for our patients to view the purity of the cannabis we offer. The MariTrust team is comprised of compassionate professionals who are dedicated to providing Medical Cannabis Patients with quality products, respect and care.
We want to assure those who have read this blog that we have taken action and our products can be trusted. Our new management team is testament to the fact that we are striving for excellence. we hope there can be an acknowledgment of the positive changes that we have made.

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Originally Posted by cologrower420

What is the process you go through when you photograph your meds? Do you use outside lighting or what's on the scope? It seems that your pics are better quality than other MMC's that take pictures. Thanks.

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The scope is just the Discovery under the standard lighting (adjustable LED on the scope itself)... we generally keep it near the highest level and leave the settings at default in the scope program itself. I was surprised at how nice the Discovery looked compared to my old Celestron, even after having tweaked that one to match my eye.

As far as the KindReviews pictures, that one's a trade secret. :thumbsup:

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Originally Posted by MariTrust

Thank you Kind Reviews for providing the cannabis community with your "Med Watch" review. We believe cannabis centers should be held accountable for the medication they provide to patients. The detailed pictures showing mite damage and the effects caused on finished medicine stock will provide patients the education required for selecting quality medicine.
With that said MariTrust is under new management.
In recognition of quality control issues encountered during the months of June and July of 2010, the MariTrust team has implemented changes to the operation to ensure all products are of the highest quality. In addition to lab testing our strains, we will have a 200x zoom-high powered microscope for our patients to view the purity of the cannabis we offer. The MariTrust team is comprised of compassionate professionals who are dedicated to providing Medical Cannabis Patients with quality products, respect and care.
We want to assure those who have read this blog that we have taken action and our products can be trusted. Our new management team is testament to the fact that we are striving for excellence. we hope there can be an acknowledgment of the positive changes that we have made.

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With all due respect, you guys were still selling those same meds that we found mites on in June (Northern Blues and Hog's Breath) at the end of August, a scant 2 weeks ago, and all of them are still listed on your menu... So my take on it is that this wasn't just a June/July thing per se, as infected meds were being sold at the shop through the end of August. I understand that you may have cleaned things up for the next harvest (which most likely wouldn't be in the shop yet if we got infected strains only 2 weeks ago and the "clean-up" took place in June/July), but the fact remains that we went in and batted 2 for 2 getting heavily-infected strains at the end of August, both of which were sold to us without hesitation. It's a certainty that your patients purchased some of those same infected meds during that time as well...

If things are cleaned up now, that's great and we're happy to hear it -- however, the fact remains that patients have been sold infected meds for months now and we felt the need to say something about it. I'm pleased that you got a scope in the shop -- that's a major positive step that should be taken at every dispensary... Best of luck to you in the future -- I know that mistakes are made by well-meaning people and what really matters is how things are handled moving forward.

We posted your comment so it's visible on the site, thank you for responding.

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Originally Posted by MariTrust

Thank you Kind Reviews for providing the cannabis community with your "Med Watch" review. We believe cannabis centers should be held accountable for the medication they provide to patients. The detailed pictures showing mite damage and the effects caused on finished medicine stock will provide patients the education required for selecting quality medicine.
With that said MariTrust is under new management.
In recognition of quality control issues encountered during the months of June and July of 2010, the MariTrust team has implemented changes to the operation to ensure all products are of the highest quality. In addition to lab testing our strains, we will have a 200x zoom-high powered microscope for our patients to view the purity of the cannabis we offer. The MariTrust team is comprised of compassionate professionals who are dedicated to providing Medical Cannabis Patients with quality products, respect and care.
We want to assure those who have read this blog that we have taken action and our products can be trusted. Our new management team is testament to the fact that we are striving for excellence. we hope there can be an acknowledgment of the positive changes that we have made.

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I hope that you guys read this thread and see the follow-up. As a patient, there isn't really any reason to dis-believe the kindreviews people. It doesn't fucking matter what you're doing now, it's quite obvious you've knowingly sold dirty medicine, the worst fucking possible thing you could do as a purported 'MMC'.

The only way you could possibly survive moving forward, is to post your sales and revenue numbers, and fucking donate your last four months of profits to some cause, like the wildfires. Everyone knows you were probably aware of this problem, but you were probably too busy cashing checks and depositing dirty money to bother with it. I'm sure you weren't aware of sites like kind reviews and these sites and threads. Of course you wouldn't have allowed this if you were aware of the possible consequences.

I will go out of my way to tell everyone under the sun that you're selling dirty medicine. I smoke a lot of pot, and I know I'm not the only one who feels this way, so have fun with that.

I'm sure the costs of becoming compliant will force you to keep your doors open, hopefully your only profits are from the ignorant and those who you continue to take advantage of.

edit:
The scope is just the Discovery under the standard lighting (adjustable LED on the scope itself)... we generally keep it near the highest level and leave the settings at default in the scope program itself. I was surprised at how nice the Discovery looked compared to my old Celestron, even after having tweaked that one to match my eye.

As far as the KindReviews pictures, that one's a trade secret.
Thanks.

Fair enough. I got a substantial discount on the last veho in stock at the shop in littleton. I'm sure I'll be doing a ton of practicing in the coming days before harvest.

Once again, thanks for your work, this never would have gotten the coverage it has without your site. You should consider putting up a paypal donation link or something to reward yourself.

who has used a stand-alone digi-microscope?

one that takes an SD card and doesn't require a USB connection and compatable computer to take pictures?

recs?

great thread.

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Originally Posted by copobo

who has used a stand-alone digi-microscope?

one that takes an SD card and doesn't require a USB connection and compatable computer to take pictures?

recs?

great thread.

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I have to think there would be quality issues when you bring batteries, separate memory, etc. I don't have any knowledge on it, I'm sure mmj can give a better reco, but these veho scopes are super easy to use. 5 minutes of software install, and it's ready to take pictures and video, seems easy to use.

Good luck.

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Originally Posted by copobo

who has used a stand-alone digi-microscope?

one that takes an SD card and doesn't require a USB connection and compatable computer to take pictures?

recs?

great thread.

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I have never used one of those actually. I know that many of the better lab-quality ones that have a dynamic focal range (often up to 2500x or more) are slide-based and won't work with 3D samples such as marijuana. I'm sure there's a stereo microscope sans slides, but I haven't found one at a reasonable price... the Discovery does the job we need it to do, so we've settled on that one as the best choice.

We'll probably end up with a better lab-quality microscope at some point, but those damn things are expensive... Discovery FTW at the moment.

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Originally Posted by cologrower420

I have to think there would be quality issues when you bring batteries, separate memory, etc. I don't have any knowledge on it, I'm sure mmj can give a better reco, but these veho scopes are super easy to use. 5 minutes of software install, and it's ready to take pictures and video, seems easy to use.

Good luck.

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Trip report. I got an amazing fucking deal on the veho200x scope. The Hemp Center in Littleton carries them. Still cheaper from amazon if you have two days plus.

That said, it's super easy to 'view' my medicine. Anywhere from 20x through the max, it's super easy to view the meds. Seems that there is a one-click picture taking function.

Negatives: I don't see where photos are stored, and it appears that the camera takes pictures whenever it's plugged in, which is fucking stupid. I'm looking at sample pics of 1000plus pics from the short time my shit was plugged in first time.

I don't know enough but I'll post a couple pics showing what I see. I'm spending this $50 at harvest time since I'm a new grower. I could use a handheld LED 100x scope but that shit gives me a headache, so we're using this.