You are here
Home 🌿 Marijuana Politics 🌿 The last holdout for cannabis retail in Canada is going to be opening stores soon 🌿The last holdout for cannabis retail in Canada is going to be opening stores soon
Warning message
The subscription service is currently unavailable. Please try again later.Cannabis retail stores are coming to Nunavut, the territorial government announced on Tuesday.
They will begin accepting retail applications on June 1.
The territory that nearly 40,000 people call home passed its Cannabis Act in June 2018, but only two companies — Canopy Growth and AgMedica Bioscience Inc — have been permitted to sell their products since then, with customers ordering online or over the phone.
According to a government document, both enclosed stores and “integrated stores” — cannabis sales within existing retail stores — will be permitted. Standalone stores will be allowed to display a small amount of product but cannabis products in integrated stores will be kept behind lock and key. Additionally, physical retailers will also be eligible to be licensed for online sales and telephone orders.
As part of Nunavut’s retail process, community consultation will be required before any retail licenses are granted. The consultation period is 60 days for the initial store in a community and 30 days for any subsequent stores. According to the Nunavut Cannabis Retailers Handbook, applications will take 30 days to process.
The introduction of retail stores should take a bite out of the illicit market in the territory. Iqaluit-Manirajak MLA Adam Lightstone has been critical of the lack of Nunavut retailers in the past.
“Right now, Nunavut is reliant on the black market to supply cannabis sales in the territory,” he told the Nunavut News last year. “With the amount of cannabis consumption in the territory and the fact that all that money is being funnelled out, siphoned out by the black market, I find that unacceptable.”
The territory’s Cannabis Act was the last provincial or territorial act to pass in the country.
Alberta continues to lead the nation in cannabis retails stores, with more than 400 stores currently open. Yukon and Northwest Territories each have five physical stores up and running.
“Allowing licensed private businesses to import and sell cannabis will give Nunavummiut more access to safer legal recreational cannabis,” the release said. “The licensing regime includes strict rules to combat the illegal market and protect Nunavut’s youth.”
420 Intel is Your Source for Marijuana News
420 Intel Canada is your leading news source for the Canadian cannabis industry. Get the latest updates on Canadian cannabis stocks and developments on how Canada continues to be a major player in the worldwide recreational and medical cannabis industry.
420 Intel Canada is the Canadian Industry news outlet that will keep you updated on how these Canadian developments in recreational and medical marijuana will impact the country and the world. Our commitment is to bring you the most important cannabis news stories from across Canada every day of the week.
Marijuana industry news is a constant endeavor with new developments each day. For marijuana news across the True North, 420 Intel Canada promises to bring you quality, Canadian, cannabis industry news.
You can get 420 Intel news delivered directly to your inbox by signing up for our daily marijuana news, ensuring you’re always kept up to date on the ever-changing cannabis industry. To stay even better informed about marijuana legalization news follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.