DENVER — Denver officials have seized chocolate bars and gummies marketed under the PolkaDot brand from six city retailers after laboratory tests revealed illegal and undisclosed psychoactive drugs.
City inspection reports, lab results, and interviews obtained by Denver7 Investigates showed the products were being sold in smoke shops, gas stations and convenience stores, despite state law banning retail sales of psilocybin or any synthetic tryptamines.
“It is not just a chocolate bar,” said Jessica Davis, a public health investigator with the Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE). “This is a psychedelic chocolate bar. They are being marketed as psychedelic or psychoactive products.”
What inspectors found
According to Certificates of Analysis from the independent lab Tryptomics, three PolkaDot chocolate bar samples purchased from three different stores all tested positive for different psychoactive substances — sometimes in combination:
- Sample 1: Psilocybin only
- Sample 2: A mix of natural tryptamines, like psilocybin, and synthetic tryptamines
- Sample 3: Synthetic tryptamines only, including 4-HO-MET, 4-HO-DET, and 4-AcO-DET
Each of those compounds can have psychoactive effects.
None were disclosed on the product labels, which instead listed only standard chocolate ingredients.
“The biggest piece that I want to drive home is the inconsistency for the consumer,” Davis said. “We don’t want to demonize natural medicines that are legal for personal use in Colorado, but the consumer has the right to know what they’re consuming. The lack of ingredient disclosure and inconsistent ingredients across the same brand really creates problems.”
Illegal to sell — even after decriminalization
In 2022, Colorado voters decriminalized psilocybin for personal use under Proposition 122, but it remains illegal to sell psilocybin‑infused products in stores. The law also explicitly prohibits synthetic tryptamines.
“Colorado did create a legal path forward for natural medicines,” Davis said. “But unfortunately, these products are not that… Retail sales are not allowed at this time, and the Natural Medicine Act specifically calls out and prohibits synthetic tryptamines.”
How they got on shelves
The seized products were sold at Broadway Smoke Shop, multiple King’s Smoke & Vape locations, and Myxed Up Creations. Davis said shops gave invoices from wholesalers, but oversight appeared minimal.
One wholesaler admitted meeting a contact at a trade show and ordering the chocolate bars by exchanging a phone number over WhatsApp — with no known regulatory or safety checks.
“Are they inspected by some sort of regulatory agency? Are they using safe, sanitary practices? Are they even in a manufacturing facility — or were these products produced in someone’s basement or garage? We just don’t know at this time,” Davis said.
City crackdown
Once products tested positive for banned substances, stores were ordered to hold them, then destroy them in front of inspectors — a process that included opening packages, crushing the products, and pouring bleach over them so they could not be consumed.
Eric Escudero, spokesperson for the City’s Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection, said the consequences can be steep.
“Any business that is breaking the law and selling illegal products risks license revocation, license suspension, and even criminal citations,” Escudero said. “It could lead to a business owner losing their ability to operate legally in the City and County of Denver.”
The cited stores are facing $999 citations for this latest violation.
Escudero said inspectors will continue complaint‑driven and random visits — and warned retailers tempted to take the risk.
“It might not be today, it might not be tomorrow, but soon there’s going to be a city inspector who randomly shows up in your business,” he said. “It’s probably going to cost you your business.”
Meanwhile, he said, consumers are encouraged to call 311 to report the illegal sale of psychedelic products.
Retailer response
In a statement to Denver7, Myxed Up Creations said:
“Myxed Up has asked the Denver Department of Public Health & Environment for guidance, we have cooperated with their efforts. We were assured that they would provide us with education to ensure that the products we offer are in compliance with labeling and ingredient standards. The documentation that we received … is confusing because the citation lists several illegal ingredients that were not present in the sample provided by Myxed Up.”
Consumer warning
Investigators say consumers should avoid buying any psychedelic‑branded chocolate or gummies from unregulated outlets — and be wary of misleading labels, pointing to the PolkaDot labels that suggested “microdose” to “God mode” effects.
Products marketed as functional mushrooms, like lion’s mane or reishi, have also tested positive for psilocybin or synthetic drugs in some cases.
Davis advises consumers to verify makers are licensed with the state’s health department and ask questions about sourcing.
“If someone is interested in obtaining safe and legal natural medicine, they can cultivate that natural medicine themselves… or work through a licensed healing center or facilitator," Davis said.
