California cannabis contamination recalls — every DCC recall in this category

The DCC issues a contamination recall when laboratory testing or post-market sampling finds an adulterant in cannabis product that exceeds the action limits set in California cannabis regulations. The dominant cause across this dataset is microbial contamination, especially Aspergillus species — a mold genus that can grow during cultivation, drying, or storage and that triggers a mandatory recall when detected above threshold. Pesticide contamination, residual solvent contamination from manufacturing, and heavy metal contamination are also represented, with pesticide enforcement having peaked during the 2024 Chlorfenapyr vape cartridge enforcement wave and dropped sharply afterward.

Contamination recalls are weighted toward flower and vape cartridges in this dataset; edibles and beverages do not appear in this category because their failure mode is structural (label math, dose accuracy) rather than chemical. Mandatory recalls are more common in this category than in any other — when DCC issues a contamination notice, the underlying product can hurt someone, and the regulator does not wait for the licensee to act voluntarily.

This page lists every California cannabis recall in the contamination category, sourced verbatim from the DCC public recall portal. Phenominal Consulting maintains an organized index of the portal, refreshed daily.

Category labels (contamination, label/data, mixed, other, packaging) are interpretive groupings applied by Phenominal Consulting based on the verbatim DCC reason language. They are not DCC's own classification. Each individual recall above links to the original DCC notice for the authoritative text.

Browse the full recall tracker or download the latest monthly report.