B.C. predicting legal cannabis prices will drop

Data released by Statistics Canada on Wednesday shows that while the price of pot was down this summer, Canadians are still paying nearly twice as much for legal cannabis than for the illegal product.

According to Statistics Canada, it’s the first time their crowdsourced data on pricing has shown a drop in the price of legal marijuana since legalization.

The average price for legal weed fell slightly to $10.23/g between July and September and the average price for illegal cannabis also slumped slightly to $5.59.

However, BC’s Minister of Public Safety Mike Farnworth is predicting the legal price will drop further.

“We know from US jurisdictions that have legalized that there can be significant price fluctuations in the early years and we expect prices to come down as supply ramps up. We also know from US jurisdictions that it will take time to capture the illegal market —so we shouldn’t expect this to happen overnight,” Farnworth said in a statement.

“You can expect to see increasing enforcement action against illegal retailers by the Community Safety Unit, which will help to reduce the availability of illegal cannabis. At the same time we are continually reviewing the licensing application process and looking at ways to streamline the system to ensure broad access to legal cannabis in communities across the province.”

When it comes to the future of legal pot prices in BC a lot will depend on the province.

It’s the only wholesaler and stores aren’t allowed to sell below those government set prices.

The owner of a licenced Vernon cannabis store said she has already seen the wholesale price dropping.

“We do pass those savings on to our customers,” said Sarah Ballantyne who owns Spiritleaf Vernon

Statistics Canada urged people to be cautions about its crowdsourced pricing information noting it involves a relatively small sample size.