Canadian Cannabis Survey

Canadian Cannabis Survey finds more people bought legal product in 2022

The illegal market’s share continues to decline

Postmedia News

Published Jan 14, 2023
 
Cannabis vapes, chocolates, chews, and a tea made up the Ontario Cannabis Store’s sneak peek at the initial selection of cannabis edibles, extracts, and topicals before they officially hit legal store shelves. Photo by Toronto Sun

The Government of Canada’s annual marijuana study has found that the adoption of legal products continues to grow.

The results of the 2022 Canadian Cannabis Survey were released last month. It found that a greater proportion of respondents reported a legal source as their usual source of cannabis compared to 2021, with legal storefronts being the most common source since 2019. A smaller proportion reported illegal storefronts and illegal online sources in 2022 compared to 2019.

The proportion of those who purchased cannabis in the past 12 months from a legal storefront did so 61% of the time, according to the survey, up from 53% in 2021. Only 2% said they purchased products from an illegal website, 1% from an illegal dispensary and 1% from a cannabis dealer.

An October survey conducted by Research Co. and Glacier Media found similar results. That survey found that 48% of respondents said they had purchased cannabis at a legal retailer, up from 38% in 2021. That survey also found that only 15% of respondents said they had not bought any cannabis from a legal retailer in the past year, down from 20% in 2021.
Canada legalized non-medical cannabis in October 2018. One of the primary objectives of the Cannabis Act is to remove the illegal market and provide a regulated cannabis market for consumers.

The Canadian Cannabis Survey has been conducted by Health Canada every year since 2017. Data for this 2022 edition was collected between April and June. Over 10,000 people responded anonymously.

The Government of Canada says it collects data to better understand how Canadians view and use cannabis.

They say results of the survey will be used to inform policy and program development, and help target public education and awareness activities. The data from the survey will also help inform the legislative review of the Cannabis Act, which is being led by an independent expert panel.
 

Some other interesting findings from the annual survey included:

– 12-month cannabis use among youth aged 16-19 has returned to pre-legalization levels after increasing between 2018 and 2020;

– The proportion of respondents smoking cannabis have continued to decline since 2018 while vapourizing cannabis using a vape pen has increased since 2021;

– Of those who used cannabis, driving after recent use decreased between 2018 and 2021 and remained unchanged in 2022;

– Cannabis users said they spent about $65 a month at legal dispensaries monthly;

– Smoking remains the most common method of consuming cannabis, followed by eating and vapourizing with a vape pen or e-cigarette.

The proportions of those reporting daily or near-daily cannabis use has been stable since 2018 as has the percentage of those classified at “high-risk” of developing problems from their cannabis use.