This week marks five years since cannabis was legalized for non-medical use in Canada.
As part of the anniversary, Statistics Canada released new research looking at the industry and Canadian’s use of cannabis.
Around 22 per cent of people aged 15 and older reported using cannabis in the past year back in 2021.
Nova Scotia (32 per cent), Prince Edward Island (28 per cent), New Brunswick (24 per cent) and Ontario (24 per cent) had some of the highest rates of usage.
The use of cannabis rose for most age groups and is most common among 18- to 24-year-olds, while use among 15- to 17-year-olds has not increased since legalization.
Canada’s cannabis sector grew to $11.6 billion by late 2022, up from $6.4 billion when non-medical use was first legalized. However, it has started to decline over the past few months.
An estimated two-thirds of cannabis users reported obtaining at least some of the cannabis they consumed from a legal source in 2020, higher than the 23 per cent reported before legalization in 2018 and the 47 per cent just after legalization in 2019.
Data suggests that more than 70 per cent of the total value of cannabis consumed in Canada was from a legal source by the first half of 2023, up from 22 per cent when legalization was implemented.
The number of legal cannabis stores has increased from fewer than 200 by the end of 2018 to more than 3,330 in the first quarter of this year. StatCan said data suggests the number of stores has stabilized.
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