An ecstasy themed ‘MDMA gummies’ sweet has been removed from Wolt after it was found to contain a “dangerous” synthetic hallucinogenic drug.

The product was found to contain 2-Fluorodeschloroketamine, or 2-FDCK, which health experts warn could lead to seizures, heart problems and even death.

While 2-FDCK is not illegal, it is due to become a controlled substance later this year following a decision by the United Nations in March.

But with “hundreds of thousands” of such chemicals flooding the market, experts warn this latest incident is just the tip of the iceberg, calling the issue a “big problem”.

A spokesperson for Wolt said the ‘MDMA gummies’ product had been “delisted and will never be available for sale on our platform again”.

Meanwhile, the company that produces the product has claimed the gummies do not usually contain 2-FDCK and that the tested sample had “accidentally” come from a batch containing the compound that had been specially made for a customer on request.

“The only thing that we can think of is that a small leftover from this batch was packed by accident by our people,” a spokesperson for The High Company said, adding it would recall all packages of the gummies in Malta.

On Sunday, the University of Malta forensic laboratory issued a warning about ‘MDMA gummies’ being sold through Wolt, after an analysis of a sample of the product found it contained 2-FDCK despite it not being listed as an ingredient on the packaging.

The lab said use of the compound which is closely related to ketamine – a dissociative painkiller used as a horse tranquilliser but that has also been used illegally in recreational settings – was “dangerous” and could lead to “serious outcomes”.

It also confirmed the presence of muscimol, a “highly potent” hallucinogenic chemical found naturally in amanita muscaria mushrooms that was listed in the ingredients.

When Times of Malta surveyed the Wolt platform on Monday, it found two sellers advertising the gummies as available for delivery.

While ‘MDMA gummies’ were listed as an age-restricted product on Wolt, Times of Malta was not asked to produce proof of ID when receiving the product although it was notified about the requirement at the time of ordering.

Although marketed as a confectionary product and sold in ‘edible’ sections of retailer stores on Wolt, small print on the product packaging says it “should not be sold for consumption” due to not being approved by European authorities.

Nowhere on the packaging was 2-FDCK listed as an ingredient.

A spokesperson for Wolt said that “considering the findings of the laboratory examination and the labelling of the product, we totally believe that such products shouldn’t be available for sale”.

While noting the company did not have the “expertise to perform or even comment on laboratory testing for products”, the spokesperson said Wolt “totally trusts the findings of the University of Malta... helping us to identify a product that shouldn’t be available for sale on our platform”.

Commenting on the lack of ID checks when Times of Malta ordered the product, the spokesperson said Wolt has “clear guidelines on the delivery of restricted items”.

Stressing that “every order containing restricted items is labelled and processed with additional security features”, he said the company had “prohibited contactless delivery” for such orders.

The spokesperson said the company examined incidents of instructions not being followed “to identify any possible incompliance from the courier partner’s side”.

Manufacturer response

The product is manufactured by the Czech Republic-based The High Company, which describes the ‘MDMA gummies’ on its website as “as close to the real thing as we can get”.

The company states that the “working components” of the gummies include muscimol and “a low dosage of our speed recipe”. The company also produces ‘speed gummies’ in seeming reference to amphetamines, a drug which, like MDMA, is illegal.

The High Company says the people who test its products are “real party people and frequent users” and were “so satisfied” with the ‘MDMA gummies’ they now use them “more than the illegal ecstasy that is out on the streets”.

Responding to questions, a spokesperson for the company called the incident “very concerning” and that a packaging mix-up was to blame.

“This afternoon [Tuesday] we called our agent in Malta to recall all the products from the shops and replace them with a newer batch of the original muscimol recipe,” a company spokesperson said.

“Something like this obviously cannot happen and we are the ones to blame for this mistake. There should not be any more of this batch circulating in Malta by this time tomorrow,” the spokesperson said.

“We guarantee that our products are safe to use if used responsibly, of course.”

‘You shouldn’t take them’

University of Malta forensic scientist Godwin Sammut explained that 2-FDCK had turned out to be the “main ingredient” in the gummies, despite not being listed on the packaging.

“With growing popularity and availability of NPSs [new psychoactive substances] we feel it is our responsibility to issue these alerts so the public know what they’re dealing with,” he said.

Stressing that synthetic compounds, or ‘legal highs’, were becoming a “big problem”, Sammut questioned why such products were allowed to be imported and sold and said it was “about time” the law changed.

Sammut stressed the danger of children accidentally consuming the product by confusing them with regular sweets, noting the effects of compounds like 2-FDCK could be significantly more potent when taken by children.

Clinical toxicologist and Mater Dei Hospital emergency department consultant Jeffrey Bonnici said 2-FDCK posed a problem for health professionals. “This is a new drug; we don’t know how it will affect the body and we have so little data to go on... people are taking this blindly,” he said.

“This should be an eye-opener for many people out there; it’s a serious thing,” he said, adding “you shouldn’t take them”.

Stressing the product represented the tip of the iceberg, with “hundreds of thousands of new compounds” flooding the market, Bonnici thinks more needs to be done to tackle the issue.

“I don’t know how we can have a packet saying ‘MDMA’ on it; it seems we’re not checking these products, where are the authorities in this?”

Stressing there were “at least 600” different synthetic cannabis products alone on the market, Bonnici urged health officials to conduct regular checks on multiple samples of such products.

Legal, for now

While 2-FDCK is currently not illegal in Malta, this is due to change in December when it is added to the Convention on Psychotropic Substances of 1971, a United Nations treaty controlling the use and distribution of certain drugs.

The compound is due to become a ‘Schedule II’ substance, meaning it will only be available on prescription. Its manufacturing will also be controlled and import and export licences will be required for every shipment.

Responding to questions, a spokesperson for the Health Ministry said “food supplements may only be dispensed by a pharmacist or a person with other suitable qualifications”.

Asked how often the law governing restricted drugs was updated, he said NPSs were“scheduled annually” according to UN and EU decisions and “local demands”, adding that a“number of substances” including 2-FDCK would “soon be scheduled”.

Questions were sent to the justice ministry.