CANADA: Ailing Canadians were only hours away from being able to legally buy marijuana for medical purposes on the free market, officials said Monday.
As of Tuesday, Health Canada will phase out a system of homegrown marijuana for a factory-style operation that will grow, package and distribute a variety of marijuana, the Toronto Star reported Sunday.
Some 37,400 patients use medical marijuana, Health Canada says. That number is expected to rise to as many as 450,000 by 2024.
The sanctioned growers are required to raise the plants indoors and have vaults and security systems to prevent thefts of their products, which could be sold on the black market. One firm plans to initially produce 20 different strains.
Recreational use of marijuana will continue to be banned.
Since June, 156 companies have applied for licenses. The first two were awarded last week.
Under the system being phased out, some 4,200 people were licensed to grow marijuana on their property for no more than two patients each. That type of cottage industry will now be banned. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police has charged such operations were fronts for illegal activity.
The price of legal weed is expected to soon undercut the stuff sold on the streets, where it goes for about $10 a gram, or about $280 an ounce. By next year, Health Canada project the factory-grown marijuana will retail next year for about $7.60 a gram, or $215 an ounce. Within 10 years, industry revenues are projected to reach $1.3 billion a year.
Gord Brown says
YEA YEA YEA…..take a hike on this one government…..repeal prohibition and thats it!! Doctors already prescribing it and it is still a schedule1 drug?? They are just posturing right now and trying to find a way to preserve the status quo in the health field! We’ve been misled all this time and at a cost of many many lives and many incarcerations. This needs to stop and the gov and the medical community need to step aside. Let us for once decide what is best for us, NOT YOU!!!!
Gord Brown says
YEA YEA YEA…..take a hike on this one government…..repeal prohibition and thats it!! Doctors already prescribing it and it is still a schedule1 drug?? They are just posturing right now and trying to find a way to preserve the status quo in the health field! We’ve been misled all this time and at a cost of many many lives and many incarcerations. This needs to stop and the gov and the medical community need to step aside. Let us for once decide what is best for us, NOT YOU!!!!
Solarcloud1 says
SICK SICK SICK…
Solarcloud1 says
SICK SICK SICK…
Richard says
Deserves Dissection; Instead of inspecting home-gardens Health Canada has called all personal gardeners guilty as charged for selling their medication. I never have in the whole time I’ve had the responsibility of production and license for my medications. HC states 37,400 humans are medicating with cannabis, that they have given licenses to because many more use it as an alternative to alcohol. As a presently sanctioned gardener a security system, cameras and a ‘real’ safe were part of my self-medications ‘action-plan’ worked-out by my Occupational Therapist tailored to my present abilities. Recreational use will just continue to grow because of the “fear-factor” from the ‘Lame-stream’ media and the propaganda that entices humans susceptible to fads. This is a good thing though because the younger generation needs to get away from waking-up hung-over. Some gardens produce efficiently and presently 1-4$/ gram is not uncommon, after paying for initial investments and renovations. As I stated, I have never been involved in illegal sales so the statement of the Royal Monkeys is a lie, deal with it ! The true picture is the future, and why, 1.3 billion / year to spend! Who spends that!? It will be larger than that believe me! But what about ‘indigent’ patients being able to afford the new higher prices!? This will inhibit their reasonable-access and that is a Charter-point up here! As for cannabis scheduled 1 drug rating, GW Pharma just got a shit-wad of patent applications so that makes the schedule thing just shit-in-the-field to be planted over by the populaces lack of long-term memory because it is cannabis they go after now, but it will be turmeric tomorrow!