Knockoff pot vapes raise concerns for licensed companies

In storefronts along Los Angeles' Boyd Street, a narrow commercial strip that has become a de facto bazaar for all things cannabis, there are displays of fake packaging and ready-to-fill vape cartridges for sale for popular brands including Heavy Hitters and Kingpen.

The state Department of Public Health, which regulates vape companies and other cannabis manufacturers, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Thus far, the state's illegal market has been operating largely unchecked, providing a ready market for fakes. Kingpen has taken matters into its own hands, suing Chinese companies that produce fake packaging, sending scores of cease-and-desist letters to businesses that sell them and filing complaints with the state, only to see nothing change.

"We have every reason to believe that the same criminal gangs and cartels that dominate the global pharmaceutical counterfeit drug trade will similarly wrestle control of California's cannabis counterfeit drug trade," says a report compiled by Mammoth Distribution and submitted to state regulators. The company distributes Heavy Hitters.With counterfeits leaching into California's illegal vape market, the threat for licensed companies is not just millions in lost revenue.

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