Majority Of Canadians View Marijuana Industry As ‘Important’ To Country’s Economy, Poll Finds As Cannabis Use Rates Match Nicotine

A majority of Canadians say the marijuana sector that’s emerged since
cannabis was legalized nationwide seven years ago is an “important
contributor” to the country’s economy, according to a new poll that also
shows that rates of cannabis and nicotine use are now virtually the same.

As Canada grapples with a volatile trade relationships with the U.S., the
survey from Abacus Data, which was commissioned by the cannabis company
Organigram Global, found that sentiment toward the marijuana economy skews
positive.

Canadians seem to recognize the value of the cannabis industry to the
country’s overall financial health, with 59 percent describing the sector
as an “important contributor” to the economy. That includes 69 percent of
recent Liberal voters and 58 percent of recent Conservative voters.

When the research firm and Organigram last asked Canadians that question in
April, 57 percent agreed about the importance of the marijuana market
relative to the national economy, so this represents a slight increase.

Respondents also voiced support for additional reforms to bolster the
market such as expanding regulatory input to include both health and
agriculture agencies (47 percent), being more proactive to combat illicit
sales (43 percent), lowering taxes or offering tax incentives to marijuana
businesses to generate jobs (33 percent) and creating the infrastructure to
develop new cannabis product types (31 percent).

“Canadians are ready for the legal cannabis sector to become a pillar of
our economic growth strategy,” Beena Goldenberg, CEO of Organigram Global,
said. “There’s a clear public mandate for government to modernize how
cannabis is treated. Not just as a regulated product, but as a key Canadian
industry with room to innovate in areas like beverages, edibles, and
wellness.”

The survey also asked respondents to select a preference between two
options for the future of marijuana policy: 1) Update the rules to foster
the industry’s growth “even if that means cannabis becomes a larger part of
Canada’s economy” or 2) maintain current restrictions on the sector
limiting its expansion. Fifty-nine percent of Canadians chose the first
option.

Another 58 percent said they’d be excited or feel neutrally about the
government taking steps to support the cannabis market by “making it easier
for the sector to grow and create jobs.”

There were also questions about individual use trends, with the research
firm finding that 35 percent of Canadians have used marijuana in the past
month, and 32 percent said they consumed cannabis in the past two weeks.

Notably, the survey revealed that past-two week use of marijuana (32
percent) is now approximately the same as past-two week nicotine use (33
percent). That’s consistent with other research that’s signaled more people
are opting for cannabis over tobacco as the legalization movement evolves.

“Canadians are connecting the dots between economic resilience and smart
domestic policy,” David Coletto, CEO of Abacus Data, said. “At a time of
growing global uncertainty and rising protectionism, Canadians are taking a
pragmatic view that growing the legal cannabis sector is one of the ways to
strengthen Canada’s economy, create high-value jobs, and build greater
industrial independence at home.”

The survey involved interviews with 2,000 Canadian adults from June 25-July
3, with a +/-2.19 percentage point margin of error.

Meanwhile, although the implementation of Canada’s cannabis program didn’t
come without its hitches, studies and surveys have indicated that it’s been
generally successful, achieving many of the goals advocates argued it would
such as giving Canadian adults a safer and regulated alternative to the
illicit market, without driving youth consumption as prohibitionists
claimed it would.

According to a government report released late last year, the vast majority
of Canadian consumers now say they obtain cannabis legally, with only 3
percent of respondents reporting purchasing from illicit sources.

Observers have also been watching how broader adult-use legalization
impacts medical marijuana in Canada, noting, for example, patient
enrollment rates declining after legalization was enacted but before
retailers opened for business.

A study earlier this year, meanwhile, found similar marijuana use rates and
support for legalization in both the U.S. and Canada despite the countries’
different national approaches to regulating the drug.

Another report out of Canada this year found marijuana legalization was “associated
with a decline in beer sales,” suggesting a substitution effect where
consumers shift from one product to the other.

The post Majority Of Canadians View Marijuana Industry As ‘Important’ To
Country’s Economy, Poll Finds As Cannabis Use Rates Match Nicotine appeared
first on Marijuana Moment.