Driving down Highway 401 in southern Ontario, with the FM dial tuned to 87.9, the 1990s-era rap music fades into an ad, offering a free joint with every purchase over $20 between midnight and 4:20 a.m. at the Pot Shoppe.

A second ad then promotes a "car show for Jeeps" in the parking lot of the Pot Shoppe every Tuesday night.

"Don't forget, we have free coffee for the driver and our famous Pot Shoppe slushies at half-price for the passenger," the ad says. "THC-infused slushies — just a little more brain freeze."

It's an Ontario-first, and it's happening in Kitchener. 

The Ontario Cannabis Festival will take over Bingemans on September 7. 

Co-founder Tony Millar says the grassroots festival is made by cannabis lovers, for cannabis lovers - and will have something for everyone. 

"We'll have ongoing classes throughout the day. These classes range from how to roll a joint, to how to grow your own flower. So a lot of workshops and a lot of education. People can also learn how to infuse cannabis butter and extract cannabis into oil."

Participants can also attempt something historic!

The Ontario Cannabis Store has removed certain CannTrust Holdings Inc. products from its online store and from distribution to physical outlets until Health Canada completes its investigation involving pot cultivation in unlicensed rooms, while other provinces continue to stock and sell the company's goods.

"Due to the Health Canada temporary hold on certain CannTrust cannabis products, Ontario Cannabis Store has voluntarily removed all affected products from distribution through OCS.ca and to the authorized retail stores pending the outcome of the investigation," said spokesman Daffyd Roderick in an emailed statement on Wednesday.

An additional 50 cannabis retail stores in Ontario won’t be enough to bring down the price of pot products for consumers, says one industry watcher.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, the province’s marijuana retail regulator, is holding a second lottery in August to award 42 retail licences to open stores beginning in October. Another eight licences will go to First Nations communities.

Sudbury has two pot stores already in operation — Highlife at 1299 Marcus Dr., and Canna Cabana Sudbury, 2019 Long Lake Rd.

Touted as only the second commercial cannabis growing operation in Northern Ontario, Sudbury-based GaiaCann Inc. is looking to position itself as a medical cannabis industry leader with plans to launch a 32,000 sq. ft. indoor cultivation facility in 2020.

“The Innovation Project” facility is to be located in the northeastern Ontario town of Espanola, approximately 40 minutes from Sudbury. The facility will primarily focus on cultivation, extraction and purification of cannabis and center on medical products, notes information on the company website. Its expected capacity could produce 2,750 kg of dried cannabis and 200,000 kg of extracted product each year.

Ontario has blamed a shortage of legal cannabis from the federal government for its slow rollout of retail outlets, a claim dismissed by the federal government and regulatory bodies from other provinces, raising prospects the black market for weed may thrive longer in Canada’s most populous province.

Canada became the first G7 country to legalize recreational marijuana in October 2018 but sales have been dampened by supply constraints and prices that are higher than those on the black market.

While the provinces can set their own cannabis guidelines, a provincially run distributor purchases the cannabis from federally licensed producers, and then allocates it to retail locations approved by the province.

Cannabis producer CannTrust Holdings Inc says customers may experience temporary shortages after Health Canada found that its greenhouse facility in Pelham, Ont. is non-compliant with regulations.

The regulator found that cannabis had been grown in five unlicensed rooms between October and March of this year during which time CannTrust was applying for licences and that inaccurate information was provided to the regulator by CannTrust employees.The rooms received licences in April.

The Ontario government has announced it will allow 50 more cannabis shops to open in October. Eight are allotted to First Nations reserves. The other 42 will be chosen by lottery. Unfortunately, the government has learned only some of the lessons from its previous cannabis lottery experience last January.

The announcement of more stores is good news for the fight against black markets. Ontario has trailed other provinces on that goal because it lacks enough legal retailers.

Statistics Canada's latest retailing report confirmed the value of physical stores. Ontario's legal recreational cannabis sales totalled just $7.7 million in March, when only online sales were available. That jumped to $19.7 million in April after the first dozen shops opened.

Entrepreneur Conrad Floyd wants visitors to Niagara Falls to take their vacation to a higher level.

The Hamilton resident is in the process of converting a former derelict hotel on Lundy's Lane into the city's first cannabis-friendly inn.

"I feel Niagara is on a come back. For me, it's the promised land for investing, and cannabis tourism is a whole new industry."

When it opens later this year, the Pink Elephant Inn will feature 37 rooms, a four-season pool and a pizzeria.

Guests, who must be 19 or over, will also receive marijuana as part of the room rental.

"It's going to be all-inclusive," Floyd said.

And the hotel won't be limited to bud and breakfast. There will also be a growing operation on site.

Ontario will issue 50 new cannabis retail licences this year, a move aimed at expanding legal pot sales in the country's largest marijuana market while helping to stamp out the illicit industry, the provincial government announced Wednesday. 

The province plans to issue 42 new licences for private-sector retailers who successfully pre-qualify to be part of a new lottery system later this month. The remaining eight licences will be allocated for outlets in First Nations communities.