Oct. 17 marked the first day of legal recreational cannabis use in Canada, and with it came long lineups at cannabis retailers and concerns of shortages in the near future, with both brick-and-mortar and online stores quickly selling out. The Canadian Press reports the Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries is already expecting product shortages could last “up to at least six months.” Alberta Cannabis, the province’s only legal, non-medical online cannabis store – and the only legal option within Airdrie, as Mayor Peter Brown made a Notice of Motion to bring the cannabis bylaw back to council yet again – only had two of its 10 pre-rolled products in stock and only 15 of 81 dried flower products available. And this was just one week after legalization. Though there is likely to be a drop off in demand as the novelty of legal weed wears off, there are still definitely some kinks to work out when it comes to supply and demand – and actually getting the product to market. Then, there is the price of legal cannabis, which may keep users away from legal sources. According to Statistics Canada, the average cost for black market pot is around $6.83 per gram. The legal weed from Alberta Cannabis ranges from $8.57 per gram to $14.28, with the average at about $11.27 per gram. Considering the wait time for product to become available and the substantially-higher cost, legalized cannabis likely won’t eliminate black market sales anytime soon.
