As experts in this field, naturally we are following the progress of the legalization of selling/distributing recreational marijuana in Ontario. The provincial government is expected to license private retailers for recreational marijuana sales, a shift away from previous plans for government-run stores to sell the drug after it becomes legal across Canada in October.
Premier Doug Ford’s government will announce the plans as early as next week, the Globe and Mail newspaper reported late Thursday, citing a senior source in the provincial government who spoke on condition of not being named. The province will still control the wholesale and distribution of marijuana to stores and manage online sales, the Globe said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set Oct. 17 as the date recreational pot will become legal in Canada, a first for any Group of Seven nation. Provincial governments are responsible for administering retail distribution, with pot sales across the country expected to reach as high as C$7.2 billion in 2019, according to a report from Deloitte LLP.
Loblaw Cos., Canada’s largest grocer and owner of the popular Shoppers Drug Market pharmacy chain, was said to have held exploratory discussions with several major Canadian pot companies to study recreational sales across the country, BNN Bloomberg reported in May.
Ontario’s previous government had planned to open as many as 150 state-run cannabis stores within its Liquor Control Board of Ontario outlets. Stay tuned for more updates as they become available.
