'Pot' pizzas accidentally intoxicate nearly 100 people. The shocked restaurant owner revealed...

A restaurant in Wisconsin fed hundreds of people food laced with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary ingredient in cannabis. This includes eight children who were sent to the hospital along with several others. The revelation was made in a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday. The incident happened in October 2024 when several people who had dined at a restaurant visited the hospital with some complaints. Upon investigation, the culprit was found to be the cooking oil. Apparently, the chefs mistook a THC-infused cooking oil for the ordinary canola oil. The pot-luck (or unluck) started on October 22 when people started getting intoxicated after eating at the restaurant. Over three days, at least 85 people between the ages of 1 and 91 visited hospitals with similar complaints. They all had symptoms like dizziness, sleepiness, and anxiety. Also Read: Thailand: Man dies after consuming only beer without a morsel of food for a month

THC oil used to cook pizzas and sandwiches

One of them was advised to call Public Health Madison & Dane County. The person tested positive for THC despite being sure that they hadn't taken it deliberately. However, the restaurant turned out to be the common link as they had dined there the day before. This led to further investigations, and officials contacted the restaurant on October 24. The owner immediately shut down the place temporarily. He informed the officials the same day that there was a cooperative (shared) kitchen in the same building, which was used by another business that produced THC edibles derived from hemp. They were also told that on the same day, October 22, they had run out of oil and so used the oil from the shared kitchen. They took what they thought was canola oil and prepared doughs for pizzas and sandwiches with it. However, it turned out to be a bad idea as what they had used was THC oil. Officials tested a large oil container in the same area, and it came out positive for THC. Also Read: Brazilian journalist stumbles upon same missing girl's dead body whose story he was reporting. Watch

Experts warn of cannabis confusion

Since the THC contamination turned out to be a genuine mistake, no charges were filed against the restaurant. No one was seriously hurt in the incident, although eight children experienced vomiting and one developed hallucinations. The restaurant reopened on October 26. Experts warned in the report, "Clinicians and public health practitioners should be alert to the possibility of mass THC intoxication events via food." The authors also urged everyone to be more careful, as THC and cannabis-centred businesses have been growing. “Regulations regarding practices such as standard, clear labelling and locked storage for ingredients containing THC might decrease the risk for unintentional THC exposure at licensed food businesses,” they wrote.