18VAC110-60-250. Requirements for the storage and handling of Cannabis or cannabis products.
A. A pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility shall:
1. Have storage areas that provide adequate lighting, ventilation, sanitation, temperature, and humidity as defined in 18VAC110-60-10 and space, equipment, and security conditions for the cultivation of Cannabis and the production and dispensing of cannabis products;
2. Separate for storage in a quarantined area Cannabis plants, seeds, parts of plants, extracts, including cannabis products, that are outdated, damaged, deteriorated, misbranded, or adulterated, or whose containers or packaging have been opened or breached, until such Cannabis plants, seeds, parts of plants, extracts, or cannabis products are destroyed;
3. Be maintained in a clean, sanitary, and orderly condition; and
4. Be free from infestation by insects, rodents, birds, or vermin of any kind.
B. A pharmaceutical processor shall compartmentalize all areas in the facility based on function and shall restrict access between compartments. The processor shall establish, maintain, and comply with written policies and procedures regarding best practices for the secure and proper cultivation of Cannabis and production of cannabis products. These shall include policies and procedures that:
1. Restrict movement between compartments;
2. Provide for different colored identification cards for facility employees based on the compartment to which they are assigned at a given time so as to ensure that only employees necessary for a particular function have access to that compartment of the facility;
3. Require pocketless clothing for all employees working in an area containing Cannabis plants, seeds, and extracts, including cannabis oil and cannabis products; and
4. Document the chain of custody of all Cannabis plants, parts of plants, seeds, extracts, and cannabis products.
C. A cannabis dispensing facility shall establish, maintain, and comply with written policies and procedures regarding best practices for the secure and proper dispensing of cannabis products, including a requirement for pocketless clothing for all facility employees working in an area containing cannabis products.
D. The PIC and responsible party of a pharmaceutical processor or the PIC of a cannabis dispensing facility shall establish, maintain, and comply with written policies and procedures for the cultivation, production, security, storage, and inventory of Cannabis, including the seeds, parts of plants, extracts, and the cannabis products, as applicable. Such policies and procedures shall include methods for identifying, recording, and reporting diversion, theft, or loss, and for correcting all errors and inaccuracies in inventories. Pharmaceutical processors and cannabis dispensing facilities shall include in their written policies and procedures a process for the following:
1. Handling mandatory and voluntary recalls of cannabis products and bulk cannabis oil, botanical cannabis, and usable cannabis distributed or received via wholesale distribution. The process shall be adequate to deal with recalls due to any action initiated at the request of the board and any voluntary action by the pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility to (i) remove defective or potentially defective cannabis products from the market or (ii) promote public health and safety by replacing existing cannabis products with improved products or packaging;
2. Preparing for, protecting against, and handling any crises that affect the security or operation of any facility in the event of strike, fire, flood, or other natural disaster, or other situations of local, state, or national emergency;
3. Ensuring that any outdated, damaged, deteriorated, misbranded, or adulterated Cannabis, including seeds, parts of plants, extracts, and cannabis products, is segregated from all other Cannabis, seeds, parts of plants, extracts, and cannabis products and destroyed. This procedure shall provide for written documentation of the Cannabis, including seeds, parts of plants, extracts, and cannabis product disposition; and
4. Ensuring the oldest stock of Cannabis, including seeds, parts of plants, extracts, and cannabis products are used first. The procedure may permit deviation from this requirement if such deviation is temporary and appropriate.
E. The pharmaceutical processor shall store all Cannabis, including seeds, parts of plants, extracts, and cannabis products, in the process of production, transfer, or analysis in such a manner as to prevent diversion, theft, or loss; shall make Cannabis, including the seeds, parts of plants, extracts, and cannabis products accessible only to the minimum number of specifically authorized employees essential for efficient operation; and shall return the aforementioned items to their secure location immediately after completion of the production, transfer, or analysis process or at the end of the scheduled business day. If a production process cannot be completed at the end of a working day, the pharmacist, responsible party, or other person authorized by the responsible party to supervise cultivation and production at the processor shall securely lock the processing area or tanks, vessels, bins, or bulk containers containing Cannabis, including the seeds, parts of plants, extracts, and cannabis products, inside an area or building that affords adequate security.
F. The cannabis dispensing facility shall store all cannabis products in such a manner as to prevent diversion, theft, or loss; shall make cannabis products accessible only to the minimum number of specifically authorized employees essential for efficient operation; and shall return the cannabis products to their secure location at the completion of the dispensing or at end of the scheduled business day.
Statutory Authority
§ 54.1-3442.6 of the Code of Virginia.
Historical Notes
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 35, Issue 23, eff. August 7, 2019; amended, Virginia Register Volume 37, Issue 1, eff. September 30, 2020; Volume 37, Issue 25, eff. September 1, 2021; Volume 39, Issue 24, eff. August 16, 2023.