Sask. generated roughly $38M in cannabis sales in first year of legalization: Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada has released their one-year report on pot sales and Saskatchewan appears to be lagging behind many provinces.
Roughly $38 million was spent on cannabis in the province between October 2018 and September 2019.
In comparison, roughly $195 million was spent in Alberta and $56 million was spent in Manitoba in the same time period.
Provincially, Saskatchewan residents spent $32 per person on pot. Alberta residents spent about $45 per person and Manitoba residents spent $41 per person, according to the Statistics Canada report.
In comparison, people in Yukon spent about $103 per person on non-medicinal cannabis in the first year of legalization, the highest per capita total in the report. People in British Columbia spent just $10 per person on cannabis, the lowest per capita total in the country.
"Differences between regions in total and per capita cannabis store sales may be explained in part by Canadian's access to cannabis stores," the report said.
In terms of that access, the report includes the number of cannabis stores opened in each province. In May 2019, there were 19 shops open in Saskatchewan. By July that total reached 35.
By July 2019, the report found that about half the population of Saskatchewan lived within 10 kilometres of a cannabis store.
About 70 per cent of the Alberta population lived within 10 kilometres of a cannabis store and about 54 per cent of Manitoba residents lived within 10 kilometres of a cannabis store.
Across the country, there are more than 400 brick-and-mortar cannabis stores, according to Statistics Canada. The country generated about $908 million in retail and online cannabis sales in the first year of legalization.
