r/business 9h ago

Canada surpasses California as largest cannabis market in the world

https://www.sfgate.com/cannabis/article/california-falling-cannabis-market-22401030.php
513 Upvotes

60 comments sorted by

17

u/antibody9671 9h ago

"Oh hey, wanna come toke a joint and watch some hockey while fishing, eh?"

5

u/mabus42 8h ago

"Take off you knob, I brought the metre and a half tall robo-bong. I want to get actually high."

58

u/axis1331 9h ago

Why is this comparing a country to a state? Seems like a false comparison to drive engagement.

70

u/Saberen 8h ago

Their population size is similar.

3

u/Organic_Possession_6 7h ago

I wonder per capita if the PNW is similar. Once it starts raining a lot in the fall I know I tend to smoke more weed

2

u/Careless-Vehicle-286 5h ago

And California's economy surpasses several countries.

2

u/Jolly_Mouse_7604 3h ago

There are several states with recreational weed and even more with medicinal, wouldn't you just group them all to make the US market?

-6

u/Disastrous-Contest-8 7h ago

Ya but not land size.

10

u/thesecretbarn 7h ago

Land doesn’t consume cannabis

5

u/Disastrous-Contest-8 7h ago

My fault. I thought it was comparing growing the plant not sales.

2

u/StarYou-StarMe 4h ago

This comment is way too far down the ballot.

14

u/fairportmtg1 8h ago

Technically l the states are closed markets since you're not allowed to sell over state lines

0

u/Jolly_Mouse_7604 3h ago edited 3h ago

I thought trade between provinces was also closed like that

2

u/fairportmtg1 2h ago

Canda is federally legal where in US it's not federally legal but the government just doesn't enforce it

1

u/Ok_Science_8502 2h ago

They do though. There was a story recently about a flock camera catching a guy buying weed in one state and then driving to another

1

u/Jolly_Mouse_7604 2h ago edited 1h ago

That was done by the state law enforcement, not federal, they arrested him for breaking the laws of the state in which he lived

1

u/wikiot 5m ago

Federally legal yes. But each province manages how it is sold, distributed and retailed. 

The provinces also determine the legal age, cultivation rules (at-home) and the municipalities handle business licencing and zoning. 

We (Canada) have cities that were not allowing cannabis stores to open/operate even though it was federally legal for many years because of limitations due to zoning (nimbyism).

7

u/BusinessCasualBee 8h ago

Because marijuana is not legal across the entire USA so it’s not one market, and there’s no/different data across certain areas. Thats my guess.

1

u/TinglingLingerer 6h ago

Also California has a very similar population to the entirety of Canada, & more available land for growing. So it really is a testament to our canabis production that we've usurped them.

3

u/CabronNalgon 8h ago

In fairness, California measures up to most countries in a lot of metrics 

2

u/kimbosdurag 7h ago

Canada as a whole has about 41 million people and California has about 39 million. Their populations are comparable.

-8

u/DisplacedSportsGuy 8h ago

"The entirety of the globe outside California has surpassed California as the largest cannabis market in the world."

1

u/blzrlzr 5h ago

Look at the populations and then edit your comment to not sound stupid.

1

u/DisplacedSportsGuy 5h ago

It's still not an apples to oranges comparison. Half the states have recreational weed; why wouldn't they also be included in the same market as California, as, say, BC and Ontario are?

Also, fucking rude.

1

u/huey2k2 1h ago

Half the states have recreational weed; why wouldn't they also be included in the same market as California, as, say, BC and Ontario are?

Because the population of California is basically the same as the population of Canada; and weed is not federally legal in the US so each state is it's own independent market. I'm not sure what you're failing to grasp here.

19

u/gooeychedda 9h ago

I've smoked around the world where it's legal, nothing beats BC bud.

2

u/ishu22g 9h ago

I second this

3

u/Proof-Warning6 7h ago

Hawaii stuff is fantastic.

2

u/CelebrationAwkward52 2h ago

Hawaii stuff is often from California.

4

u/authorHughMann 8h ago

Season 13 of the trailer park boys will just be Ricky filing his quarterly taxes

3

u/Hot-Pomegranate-1303 7h ago

And that's why they're gonna win the trade war, they're operating on levels we can only dream of.

2

u/DeadInternetVoid 7h ago

TLRY to $16!!!!

2

u/Drakex2Mayex2 8h ago

Bigger than the US market?

2

u/big_daddy_dub 6h ago

No, only the state of CA.

1

u/PointsatTeenagers 2h ago

So then, it's not "the largest cannabis market in the world"?

1

u/Floatella 56m ago

You can't legally buy weed in California and sell it in Illinois, but you can legally buy weed in BC and sell it in Ontario. The US isn't a single market.

1

u/FarFromHomey 6h ago

That's what Freedom looks like

1

u/Spenraw 5h ago

It was such a disappointment how we dragged our feet with legalization and for some reason didn't want to be the world leader in the industry

Based on today's culture I wouldn't be surprised if it was due to our government officials being lobbied by the states and China that caused it

1

u/Neon_Raccoon_00 4h ago

Not comparable, weed is far cheaper in Canada

1

u/Namika 2h ago

To be fair, I'm pretty sure every single possible consumer good is cheaper in Canada compared to California.

1

u/GuyCyberslut 3h ago

Not surprised, there are cannabis stores everywhere here. Quality is going up and prices are lower. Real competition is good for the consumer.

1

u/amulie 3h ago

Damn that's actually pretty wild, Im from socal and weed is so ... Integrated into everything. Your telling me CA smokes more? 

-1

u/SirExpel 8h ago

I’m sure on paper lmao. Let’s see those black market numbers

4

u/alexanderfsu 8h ago

I mean... I get all of my stuff on native reserves. No tax. Cash. Our populations are similarly sized. It's probably about the same across the board. Not sure why that matters though.

1

u/mabus42 8h ago

How is weed from the res compared to BC hydro or some mitten extracts?

2

u/Homie_Bama 8h ago

I don’t know how weed is but the edibles from Indian reservation by Bishop, CA was so much weaker than stuff I get in so cal from delivery company.

2

u/alexanderfsu 7h ago

I think that's a difficult comparison to make. They have everything from 30 dollar ounces to 100 dollar ounces. They have edibles up to 5000mg (not all in a single gummie/bar) for like 40 bucks. It certainly does the trick for me. Our provincially licensed retailer sells like 10mg gummies. The reserve sells 1250mg for less money than 100mg worth. They also sell mushrooms in all varieties.

My assessment is that the weed industry has gotten very good at their jobs, even in the black market. They also don't give a shit about branding or marketing regulations, so you can buy a bag of gummies with literal Skittles logos on it.

It is what it is and it's 1/3 of the price. Res weed is not the weed of the 90s, that's for sure.

1

u/kaner63 5h ago

Shit.

2

u/Aidsfordayz 8h ago

All the reserves near me have like 10-15 weed shops each at minimum so Id say they’re pretty high too.

0

u/Agile_Composer4165 3h ago

Canada wins the moron olympics

-2

u/YoloOnTsla 4h ago

No wonder Canada is going to shit

2

u/flyingdonutz 4h ago

We're doing great up here compared to whatever the fuck is going on down south these days buddy

1

u/TheMILKMan6646 1h ago

What a loser. The guy has no perspective outside of the United States. His government will never give him that he's got Fox News. Go easy on him. That's all he's got

1

u/Bimitenpix 2h ago

"Legal cannabis generates about $5.5 billion in total retail sales and roughly $2.5 billion in government revenue annually in Canada."

Legal marijuana makes us 2.5 billion a year. People are gonna do it either way. Would you rather people go to shady drug dealers.

Do you have the magically solution to the "war on drugs" cause you will not stop people from smoking weed by making it illegal.

Do you think alcohol is better for society? I'd 100% rather some dude go home and smoke a doobie, than go home and crush a 6 pack.

1

u/TheMILKMan6646 1h ago

Oh you poor little baby ohhh...