Cannabis stores in Ontario sold nearly $2 billion worth of cannabis in 2023 to more than 10 million people, a 12% increase in sales from the previous year. This was the equivalent of 338 million grams of cannabis, a 23% increase from the prior year.
Ontario added 80 new licensed cannabis stores in this time period. The province authorized 276 new stores, a decrease from 497 added in 2022. Another 142 closed in 2023, up from 114 in 2022.
The new report from the OCS is the first of its kind from the agency since Q4 2022. The agency plans to update and publish its By the Numbers data report twice per year.
“As the largest wholesale distributor of legal cannabis in the world, the OCS is proud to deliver comprehensive data aimed at informing Ontarians and supporting industry partners as we enable Canada’s largest and most vibrant cannabis marketplace,” said David Lobo, President and CEO of OCS.
Total cannabis sales in 2023 through authorized cannabis stores in Ontario were $1,941,213,130. The OCS shipped 94,507,896 units to some 1,700 privately owned stores from its distribution centre in Guelph, a 26% increase from 2022.
The average wholesale price of dried cannabis flower was $4.05 a gram, not including HST. As of December 31, 2023, there were 3,983 total active product SKUs listed by the OCS.
Dried flower and pre-rolls were the bulk of these SKUs (28% and 21%), followed by concentrates (infused pre-rolls, distillate, dabs, hash, etc) at 15%, vapes at 14%, edibles at 10%, extracts (ingestible oils, tablets) at 5%, beverages at 5%, and topicals at 2%.
The wholesale price of all cannabis flower, including pre-rolls, dropped compared to 2022, except for 7 gram SKUs, which increased by just 3%.
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About one-fifth (20%) of Ontarians say they consume cannabis on a regular basis, with 27% indicating they consume occasionally. More than half (54%) report purchasing cannabis only from legal sources, while 39% report purchasing from legal and illegal sources. Just 7% say they only buy from illegal sources.
Nearly three-quarters (74%) of Ontarians say legalizing cannabis has been good for Canada.
There were nine product recalls for cannabis in Ontario in 2023, compared to six in 2022 and 10 in 2021.