Air Force recalls lip balm found to contain THC

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A United States Air Force base in Alaska was forced to recall hundreds of tubes of lip balm after they were found to contain trace amounts of THC.

An email, sent to members of the Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage warning of the recall, was posted to an Air Force Facebook page.

"It has come to our attention that approximately 400 "SAPR Lip Balm" promotional items which contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) have been distributed throughout the installation," the email read. "The Sexual Assault Response Coordinator office has ceased distribution of the lip balm items and requests that you dispose this product, if you received one of these items."

The email also stated that the presence of hemp seed oil was responsible for the THC and the levels were not significant enough to register on a drug test; however, a certain guideline prohibits the use of hemp seed products.

First Lt. Michael Harrington made a statement regarding the incident through email to the Air Force Times.

"We have identified mistakes in the purchasing process and have established safeguards to ensure that future purchases consider the possibility of such ingredients in ingestible products." he said. "We believe in taking the route of utmost caution with our service members and their families' health, and this case is no exception."