The Canadian Vaping Association (CVA) has responded to the first potentially vaping related illness in DC.

B.C.’s solicitor general says the province wants to see as much small-scale production as possible for marijuana edibles to allow for regional economic development.

“I don’t want it to be dominated by one or two large-scale variety of producers,” Mike Farnworth said Friday. “I think there’s room in this market for a considerable variety or product and a considerable variety of producers.”

He said that while provinces are responsible for retail operations and enforcement, the licensed production of cannabis, including edibles, is decided by the federal government, and any changes to regulations will become apparent if a new government takes office after Monday’s federal election.

October 17, 2019, marks the first anniversary of the legalization of cannabis federally in Canada, and the date when the second phase of products — edibles, extracts, topicals and some other alternative cannabis products also become legal. 

Each province and territory were handed the reins for rolling out legalization, and the results in terms of access to legal marijuana are very different for Canadians depending on where they live. This has also had an impact on consumption patterns.

Local governments in B.C. are spending millions on administration, planning and enforcement related to recreational cannabis, but are still waiting for the province to share the spoils of legalization.

Thursday marks a year since cannabis was legalized in Canada, and the issue of how the province will share with municipalities the provincial percentage of the federal excise tax that is applied to medical and non-medical cannabis has been outstanding since before legalization.

“It’s very important to our members,” said Sooke Mayor Maja Tait, who is president of the Union of B.C. Municipalities. “Many scrambled to provide the framework, to have it in place, and we were all under the understanding that we would receive some of this revenue.”

New regulations for cannabis edibles and topicals come into effect on Oct. 17, with products expected to reach store shelves in December

Here’s what consumers and parents need to know

“Edibles” is the umbrella term for cannabis-infused products, which can include beverages, cotton candy, dissolvable strips, gummy candies or baked goods. And topicals are products which can include lotions, balms, and oils absorbed through the skin for relief of pain or inflammation, according to Leafly.

B.C.-based Anandia Laboratories Inc. recently opened a brand-new headquarters in Vancouver’s bustling technology core.

The rapidly-expanding company tests batches of cannabis from licensed producers to ensure their safety. It has doubled in size over the past year since federal legalization came into force. (Heads up to cannabis industry job seekers — they’re hiring)

efore pot can be sold in Canada, it must be screened in laboratories like Vancouver’s Anandia.

The company has just opened new headquarters in the city’s technology hub on Great Northern Way. Pot producers pay Anandia to test their product, and business in so good, its staff has nearly doubled.

And they’re not done hiring.

Health Canada requires every new batch of marijuana to be tested for substances like bacteria, yeast and mold.

Only 14 dispensaries are currently on the right side of the law in B.C. as bigger companies are forced to be selective about where they set up shop.