Canada became the second country to ever pass a national adult-use cannabis legalization measure when it implemented its new law in 2018. The only other country to have passed a national adult-use cannabis legalization law before Canada was Uruguay in 2018.
As the first G-7 nation to permit national recreational cannabis sales, Canada has served as the largest cannabis commerce public policy experiment on earth from 2018 through the posting of this article.
According to the Canadian government, “The Cannabis Act generally prohibits the promotion of cannabis, cannabis accessories and services related to cannabis, except in limited circumstances. These prohibitions support the Government’s objective to protect public health and safety, including protecting young persons and others from inducements to use cannabis.”
“The Cannabis Act does permit promotion under specific restrictions to help adult consumers make informed decisions about cannabis. For example, by allowing for informational promotion such as price and availability, as well as brand-preference promotion, but subject to a number of conditions and restrictions including that young persons cannot access the promotion.” the Canadian government also states about cannabis-based advertising.
The Canadian government has conducted a survey every year since 2018 to try to gain insight into the nation’s emerging cannabis industry, and its potential impacts on Canada’s greater society. Starting in 2022, Canadians have been asked annually by government officials if they had noticed or seen cannabis being advertised or promoted in various locations over the past 12 months.
Survey participants from the 2023 survey (released in March 2024) were able to select more than one location if they had noticed cannabis advertisements or promotions in multiple locations. According to the survey results, “over half had not noticed any cannabis advertisements (54%), an increase since 2022 (51%). Where seen, most were outside of stores that sell cannabis (24%).”
