Albertans have spent the most money on cannabis since it was legalized last fall, according to new numbers from Statistics Canada.
New data from Statistics Canada published Monday looked at the amount sold at cannabis retail stores — broken down by province and territory — between October 2018 and June 2019.
Over that period of time, the most money was spent in Alberta, with $123.7 million spent on legal pot. That’s the most spent in any province or territory across Canada.
Ontario came in second, with $121.6 million spent on legal cannabis. Quebec followed, with $119.2 million spent. The Northwest Territories saw the least amount of money spent on legal cannabis at $1.47 million.
Ryan Seeras with Numo Cannabis in Edmonton said he’s not surprised to see how much is being spent on legal cannabis in Alberta.
“It’s just been incredible to see how the growth has happened,” he said.
By going private, Alberta has the most cannabis stores in Canada. As of Monday, 277 licences have been issued for cannabis retailers in Alberta. In Ontario, for example, there are fewer than 50.
“What we’re seeing is that the model that we’ve decided to go with is working currently, as compared to other provinces that are having to play the catch-up game now,” Seeras said.
“Canadian producers know that Alberta is a giant market and it will continue to be as long as we stay on this track.”
Here is a look at how much money was spent on legal cannabis, by province and territory:
- Alberta – $123.7 million
- Ontario – $121.6 million
- Quebec – $119.2 million
- Nova Scotia – $47.9 million
- Saskatchewan – $38.2 million
- Manitoba – $32.2 million
- New Brunswick – $25.9 million
- Newfoundland and Labrador – $21.1 million
- British Columbia – $19.5 million
- Prince Edward Island – $10.7 million
- Yukon – $2.27 million
- Northwest Territories $1.47 million
- Nunavut – N/A
WATCH BELOW: Nearly a year after cannabis was legalized in Canada, a new study says nearly half of all users are still buying their weed from the black market
Breaking down the numbers a bit further shows a bit of a different picture. When you look at how much money was spent in the legal cannabis market per capita, the data suggests people in the Yukon are actually spending the most — with a monthly average of $8.41 per capita.
Here’s a breakdown of the same Statistics Canada data, showing the monthly average spent per capita:
- Yukon – $8.41
- Prince Edward Island – $7.81
- Nova Scotia – $5.58
- Newfoundland and Labrador – $4.44
- Northwest Territories – $4.72
- New Brunswick – $3.79
- Saskatchewan – $3.65
- Manitoba – $3.44
- Alberta – $3.21
- Quebec – $1.58
- Ontario – $0.95
- British Columbia – $0.45
- Nunavut – N/A
Recreational cannabis was legalized across Canada on Oct. 17, 2018.
A Statistics Canada report released earlier this summer suggests that six months into legalization, more than 40 per cent of Canadians who said they used pot still bought it from illegal sources.
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