TORONTO: Dozens of new marijuana products are now available in retail shops in Ontario, the province’s cannabis distributor said Friday, warning supplies would be limited and the newly legalized edibles could sell out soon.
The Ontario Cannabis Store said 59 new products, including a variety of vapes, edibles, tea, i, beverages, lotions and concentrates, have hit store shelves on Monday.
“I want to be clear that initially as products roll out there will be very limited supply when it comes to the variety of products as well as the quantity,’’ agency vice-president David Lobo said. “We know a lot of producers have been working around the clock, particularly through the holidays, to get these products to market.’’
Health Canada requires manufacturers to provide 60 days’ notice of their intention to sell the products and to undergo regulatory screening.
The OCS said it has given the province’s retail store owners equal chance to stock the new products and will move quickly to refill supply.
“We expect the supply that’s going to come to the initial stores potentially to sell out within the first week,’’ Lobo said. “We replenish stores on a weekly basis. If supply comes to us quicker we can speed that up.’’
The products will be available on the OCS website on Jan. 16.
Kevin Lam, senior director of merchandising at the agency, estimates the shortage could last until March as manufacturers ramp up production to meet demand.
The number of products will grow to 100 in the coming months as they receive regulatory approval, he added. Lam said the new products, and their prices, will also enable the legal Ontario shops to compete with the black market.
“We’ve compared our offerings to similar products in the illegal market to ensure that our initial retail will be competitive,’’ he said.
The new product assortment comes as Ontario’s retail cannabis system is set to change dramatically in 2020, with the government scrapping its controversial lottery system to award store licences.
The government had frequently stated an interest in opening up the province’s retail market since cannabis became legal in October 2018. But a supply shortfall and the lottery system kept the government well shy of its stated goal of having as many as 1,000 cannabis retailers throughout the province. The first lottery saw just 25 licences issued provincewide, with a further 50 awarded in a second round.
Critics have described the system as excessively slow, arguing the lack of private retail options has prevented the province from making inroads on the illegal weed market.
Prices for legally sold edibles will range from $7 to $14, beverages are set to cost between $4 and $10, and vapes will be priced anywhere from $25 to $125.
Alcanna Inc.’s Nova Cannabis store on Queen Street West in Toronto was among the locations without cannabis stock on Monday, but handfuls of shoppers there and at the Hunny Pot store down the street told The Canadian Press they were either uninterested in cannabis edibles or unaware they were scheduled to hit shelves this week.
Dave Crapper, the Alberta company’s senior vice president of communications, wasn’t surprised to hear there was no wave of disappointed customers clamouring for products because he is expecting most of the interest in edibles to come from people who have yet to dabble with cannabis but who want to “begin nibbling.’’
“They are not on pins and needles about when the product will be available,’’ he said. “We are not antsy about any of this. It’s a new industry. It is going to have growing pains.’’