Cannabis-infused beverages will make up 20% to 30% of the Canadian pot market and the joint venture between Molson Coors Brewing Co. and Hexo Corp. intends to be the leader in the segment, according to its chief executive officer.

Canada will allow beverages, along with edibles and other new formats, to be sold in legal dispensaries beginning in December. After legalization was originally limited to dried flower and oils, companies are now positioning themselves to take advantage of the new categories, which are expected to attract more consumer demand and generate higher margins.

Cannabis use is extremely common among adolescents and young adults, with an estimated 14% of students in the 10th grade, 23% of students in the 12th grade, and 22% of college students and young adults engaging in at least monthly use in 2016.1 In 2015, 1.8 million adolescents (aged 12-17 years) and 6.9 million young adults (aged 18-25 years) were current users of cannabis.2 Moreover, the problem is increasing: 30-day prevalence of use among students in the 12th grade rose from 19% in 2007 to 23% in 2017.3 There is even higher use in Canada: In 2013, an estimated 28% of youths aged 11 to 15 years admitted to using cannabis at

Testing for impairment from cannabis is no “magic bullet”. Rather, effective oversight, worker supervision and having an impairment-management program are key to navigating the post-legal-weed world. This was the message that Tom Brocklehurst, director of prevention practices and quality with WorkSafeBC in Richmond, Brit­ish Columbia, delivered during a session at the 2019 West­ern Conference on Safety in Vancouver.

“We are now six months after legalization. I don’t know if the sky has fallen — I don’t think it has,” Brocklehurst said. “Impairment has been around as long as there are impairing substances, and impaired workers have been around for as long as people have been working.”

This Christmas Santa may be flying higher than his sleigh as he indulges on the goodies left out for him along his route.

New cannabis-infused products — edibles, beverages, extracts and concentrates — should be available by mid-December.

People will be able to purchase the new products at the Ontario Cannabis Store or licensed retailers in accordance with Health Canada regulations.

Here’s what you need to know:

Edibles

Cannabis edibles refer to foods that contain THC — the ingredient in marijuana that gets users high — and provide an alternative to smoking weed.

They are popular as baked goods, especially brownies, cookies, chocolates and candies. But you can also cook with cannabis oil (canna oil) or butter.

Despite its apparent reputation, Vancouver Island remains behind other regions of the province when it comes to issuing marijuana retail licenses.

According to the latest available statistics from the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch (LCRB), the region of Vancouver Island, Powell River and Gulf Islands is home to six licensed non-medicinal private retail stores. That is three less than the Greater Vancouver and Sunshine Coast region, and 12 less than the Interior and North. That region also leads all regions with paid, complete applications (221), paid but incomplete applications (23) and applications referred to local government or Indigenous Nations (169).

Even if cannabis users in Ontario might not be able to smoke pot with Seth Rogen, they’ll now be in a position to smoke his weed.

Seth Rogen, a Vancouver-born actor, and his fellow scriptwriter Even Goldberg are the founders of Houseplant. Houseplant recently announced that it would be bringing its unique marijuana products brand to Ontario this summer. At the moment, the brands’ products are only available in the two comedy film mogul’s B.C home province.

Houseplant’s cannabis is supplied by Canopy Growth Corp, which happens to be a Canadian industry giant. Houseplant sativa brand will be available for sale online and in Ontario regulated retail stores this summer.

Sir Sam’s Inn & Spa has been around for many years, but the luxury retreat located on Eagle Lake in Haliburton has recently announced that they’re trying to keep up with the times.

Sir Sam’s is set to become Ontario’s first “cannabis friendly” hotel, allowing guests to smoke weed on the premises.

The Inn has signed up with HotelCannabis.com, a travel site for those looking for marijuana-friendly accommodations.

They are the first Ontario-based establishment to do so.

Under the Smoke-Free Ontario Act, cannabis can be smoked anywhere cigarette smoking or vaping is permitted.

Only registered guests would be allowed to partake, and only on balconies or designated outdoor areas.

Dive Brief:

• Canada will allow some cannabis-infused products — edibles, beverages, topicals and extracts — to be sold in stores in December, according to the Associated Press. Health Canada issued regulatory details June 14, including packaging and labeling requirements. These will take effect Oct. 17, the CBC reported. Canada legalized recreational marijuana nationwide last October.

As cannabis legalization spreads across the globe, another mind-altering drug is trying to follow in its tracks: magic mushrooms.

Denver voted in May to decriminalize the fungus that contains psilocybin, a psychedelic compound popularized by ’60s counterculture. Oakland, California followed Denver’s lead a few weeks later and Oregon is trying to get a similar measure on the ballot for 2020.

Molson Coors Brewing Co.’s cannabis joint venture plan to start selling multiple types of pot beverages on Canadian shelves the first day they can legally be sold, though they won’t contain alcohol.

The maker of Coors Light has partnered with Gatineau, Quebec-based Hexo Corp. to make a variety of non-alcoholic, cannabis-infused drinks for the Canadian market. The joint venture, called Truss, will have “lots of different beverages” for sale on Dec. 16, when the beverages become legal in Canada, said Jay McMillan, Hexo’s vice president of strategic development.