Canada: Cannabis is now legal for recreational purposes

Canada became today, October 17, 2018, the first industrialized country to allow the use of cannabis for recreational purposes in all provinces of the country. This is a historic day for the country, as new legislation allows Canadian adults to legally use cannabis for recreational purposes after nearly a century of prohibition.

The first legal cannabis sales were recorded just after midnight on October 16th, on the east side of Canada, in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. In the provincial capital, St. John's, customers and enthusiasts amassed outside the dispensaries where cannabis would be offered for sale.

Bruce Linton, CEO of the Tweed Marijuana group, opened the honors by directly selling his products to the first customers, who commented to the media: “I went out tonight to be the first person in Canada to buy the first legal gram of cannabis recreational activity, to help bring about an end to the ban in Canada.”

The decision is a political victory for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who promised to legalize cannabis in his 2015 election campaign. to consume illegally.

But provinces and companies have struggled to prepare, and legalization has been delayed from initial expectations of a July start to allow for the creation of distribution and sales networks. The federal government and many provinces have been cautious, starting with limited stores and products, including inedibles for a year, and tight controls on supply.

Larger cities, such as Toronto and Vancouver, will not have open stores.

STOCK BREAK

The other side of the coin in this situation is that the reduced number of applications approved by the various governments of each province and the potential out of stock in legal establishments could mean that several interested in acquiring cannabis legally will be faced with its unavailability. .

Brad Poulos, a professor and cannabis business expert at Ryerson University in Toronto says, “There will be a lot of celebrations on the day and almost all will be with illegal cannabis. Recreational cannabis users in Canada will only continue to use their sources until the legal system reaches stability,” said Brad Poulos.

Despite the dearth of outlets in Canada's largest cities, consumers can shop online legally, from provincial governments or licensed dealers, although shipping takes a few days. Ontario, home to Canada's most populous city, Toronto, will not have physical stores until April 2019, due to a change in the retail model and changes in the provincial government.

British Columbia, which plans privately owned and provincially run establishments, has just one government store 350 kilometers from its largest city, Vancouver.

Even in provinces with more stores, empty shelves are likely due to a product shortage. A study by the University of Waterloo and economic policy think tank CD The Howe Institute found that legal supply will meet less than 60% of demand in the first few months, although this will change as production increases.
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Featured Photo: DR