Jack Hynes, owner of On The Rocks in Fort St. John, believes his store would benefit if the sale and distribution of legal weed was handled through the existing liquor distribution and retail system.   Photo By William Stodalka

If new marijuana legislation goes the way some local liquor storeowners are hoping, you could soon pick up some bud with your Bud.

Many local liquor storeowners say they would support a plan that would allow them to sell marijuana in their stores, should the federal government move forward with legalizing the drug, as it signaled in its recent throne speech.

The ballots were barely counted on federal election night when British Columbia’s largest union began planning its pitch to sell legal marijuana in B.C. liquor stores.

“On Oct. 19, after the election results, that’s when we first started having informal conversations about it with our senior staff,” said Stephanie Smith, president of the B.C. Government and Service Employees Union.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised during that election to legalize pot across Canada, assuring voters it would be a top priority for his new Liberal government.

The BCGEU, which represents government liquor-store workers, knew it had to quickly make its case to get the public and politicians on side.

Lacking any clear direction from Ottawa, the Arthritis Society has put together a diverse group that includes medical cannabis researchers, patient advocates, marijuana producers and bureaucrats to identify research priorities for the drug and create prescription guidelines for doctors.

The national charity gathered a cannabis roundtable in Vancouver on Thursday for two days of discussions. It plans to produce a report in the new year, identifying areas where more research could benefit patients, while answering important questions from doctors – such as appropriate dosage levels, how cannabis should be administered and which patients could benefit the most.

BCGEU and BC Private Liquor Store Association announce partnership for distribution and sale of non-medical marijuana

The B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU) and the B.C. Private Liquor Store Association (BCPLSA) today announced a partnership to advocate for the sale of non-medical marijuana through the existing liquor distribution and retail system, including both public B.C. Liquor Stores and private Liquor Retail Stores (LRS).

The BCGEU and BCPLSA believe this partnership will help enable a safe, responsible and effective system for recreational marijuana in British Columbia. The partnership envisions enabling British Columbians to buy non-medical marijuana throughout age-controlled liquor stores by Christmas of 2016.  

As if to blow smoke right back at police, three Nanaimo marijuana dispensaries that were raided by RCMP have reopened – with a message.

“We will have product on site by the end of the day,” said Matthew O’Donnell, a worker at Phoenix Pain Management.

On Tuesday morning, the grey area that has allowed marijuana dispensaries to operate in dozens of cities became black-and-white in Nanaimo.

Mounties acting on a cease-and-desist order issued last month escorted 16 employees away from three different pot shops and seized thousands of dollars in marijuana and cash.

“They showed me the warrant for my arrest, and I was charged subsequently with possession for the purpose of trafficking cannabis,” said Rich Scott, manager of Nature’s Source Society.

Search warrants for three storefront dispensaries executed after complaints

Nanaimo RCMP served search warrants on three marijuana dispensaries Tuesday following several complaints including selling pot to minors and actively soliciting sales from the sidewalk.

The warrants came just weeks after 10 pot shops in the city were hand-delivered letters from police asking them to cease sales within seven days or risk criminal charges.

Over several months, Nanaimo RCMP received several complaints from the public about illegal marihuana storefronts, also referred to as marihuana dispensaries. For instance, we had a grandmother allege her 15 year old grandchild had purchased marihuana from a storefront. Some of the storefronts were actively soliciting business by having sales people stand outside and/or waving signs to solicit customers, whether or not they had prescriptions.

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Neil Belot, Chief Brand Officer, commented, "People seeking a holistic approach to health and wellness, who believe in medical cannabis and the healing power of nature, can now choose a culture and community minded Licensed Producer which truly understands their needs."

Hilary Bricken

My firm has recently written blog posts about our Southern neighbor, Mexico, and its trials and tribulations with marijuana legalization (see Marijuana Legalization: Bad for the Cartels and Mexican Marijuana Laws: Change is Here/Coming). And with all that has been going on with Canada and cannabis lately, I’m going to start giving our Northern neighbor equal time.