The vast majority of cannabis purchases in Canada continue to come from legal sources, according to Health Canada’s annual cannabis survey.
The amount commonly spent per month on cannabis decreased from $73 in 2018 to $63 in 2024 but was unchanged from 2023.
The 2024 Canadian Cannabis Survey highlights ongoing trends among cannabis consumers in the country, documenting not only sources of cannabis but also topics such as consumption habits and perceptions of cannabis risks.
Smoking cannabis remains the most common way Canadians consume the product, but the proportion who report smoking cannabis has declined by twenty percentage points since legalization began.
In 2018, 89% of cannabis consumers reported smoking cannabis, a number that has declined to 69% in the last two years of the federal government’s annual Canadian Cannabis Survey.
Eating cannabis products was the second most common mode of consumption (57%, up from 43% in 2018) according to data collected from April 4 to July 2, 2024, while vaporizing (including vaping dried cannabis and/or liquid or solid cannabis extracts) accounted for 37% of reported consumption.
The number of people who reported getting their cannabis from a legal source in the first half of 2024 remained the same as the previous year at about 72%, up from just 37% in 2019.
Only 3% of respondents in the survey reported getting their cannabis from an illegal source, while 15% said they obtained their cannabis from a social source like a friend or family member, and 2% reported getting their cannabis from a storefront located in a First Nations community. Such stores generally operate outside the scope of provincial licensing regimes and have proliferated in recent years.
Those who reported using cannabis at least once in the previous 12 months increased from 22% in 2018 to 26% in 2024, but this number was unchanged from 26% in 2023. Similarly, those who reported using cannabis at least once in the past 30-day cannabis increased slightly from 15% in 2018 to 17% in 2024 but was unchanged from 17% in 2023.
Only 6% of the population in Canada reported using cannabis on a daily or almost daily basis, up slightly from 5% in 2018 but unchanged from 6% in 2023. These daily or nearly-daily users represented 24% of all people in Canada who reported consuming cannabis in the past 12 months, relatively unchanged from 25% in 2018 and 23% in 2023.
The number of people who reported using cannabis before driving (18%) increased slightly from the year prior (15% in 2023) but is still lower than the 27% who reported doing so in 2018. This included 16% who reported driving within 2 hours of smoking or vapourizing cannabis and 10% who reported driving within 4 hours of ingesting cannabis.
Of those who reported using cannabis in the past 12 months, 78% said they believe that cannabis use impairs one’s ability to drive, while 13% responded that it depends, and 6% responded that it did not impair one’s ability to drive.
The Canadian Cannabis Survey was launched in 2017 and has been conducted annually since 2018 to create a better understanding of cannabis use and consumption habits in Canada in the wake of the legalization of non-medical cannabis in October 2018.
A judge has approved a motion to extend the stay of proceedings between Final Bell and BZAM, and has been again postponed, this time to January 13, 2025. The court ruled that Final Bell’s equity claim falls behind the claims of all other creditors.
The court also approved a motion to authorize the bankruptcy filing of cannabis cultivator 9430-6347 Québec Inc. to file an assignment in bankruptcy. The company’s federal cannabis licence was listed as revoked on request earlier this year.
The monitor in the case involving the dispute between BZAM and Final Bell Holdings, Cortland Credit Lending Corporation, had asked the court for a declaration that the claims of Final Bell against BZAM are subordinate to Cortland’s claims against BZAM.
Cortland argued, and the court agreed, that the trial of Final Bell’s claim will likely be moot “as there will be no cash proceeds available to which the constructive trust could attach.”
Final Bell had opposed that motion and argued that it should have been entitled to the opportunity to prove its fraudulent misrepresentation claim. Final Bell says that BZAM made fraudulent misrepresentations to it that Final Bell relied on when the company entered into a share exchange agreement with BZAM. It also alleged that Cortland was aware of those fraudulent misrepresentations.
The judge rejected these claims, siding with the monitor.
That deal saw BZAM acquiring Final Bell Canada by issuing $13.5 million in equity in BZAM and granting Final Bell $8 million in promissory notes. At the time, the deal was said to make BZAM the fifth-largest Canadian LP.
Final Bell reacted to BZAM’s announcement at the time by saying it believes that the company’s initiation of CCAA Proceedings constituted an “improper use of creditor protection legislation to evade its creditors, defraud shareholders, and facilitate a related party going private transaction at an unjustified discounted value in order to circumvent a customary going private transaction requiring shareholder and creditor approval.”
“There is a second principal reason that Final Bell’s claim, even if ultimately successful, cannot rank in priority to the super priority DIP Lender’s Charge of Cortland,” writes the judge. “The claim of Final Bell is an “equity claim” as defined in the CCAA. As such, the claim of Final Bell ranks behind the claims of all creditors, not just creditors with court-ordered priority charges.”
“In asserting its late-breaking claim for a constructive trust, Final Bell is seeking to elevate what is inescapably an equity claim into a claim of not only a creditor, but a first-ranking creditor with priority over the Court-ordered super priority DIP Lender’s Charge. Such is expressly not permitted under the CCAA, within which the definition of “equity claims” should be given an expansive interpretation.”
However, the judge was also careful to note that he was not making any determination about the merits of Final Bell’s fraudulent misrepresentation claim against BZAM, but that if such a claim were successful, there would be no assets left over to address any findings in their favour.
As Cortland’s motion was successful, it is entitled to its costs of $150,000 inclusive of fees, disbursements, and HST, to be paid by Final Bell within 30 days of December 2, 2024.
Organigram Holdings Inc. has acquired cannabis extractor Motif Labs Ltd. for $90 million in a stock and cash deal.
The move, consisting of $50 million in cash and $40 million of Organigram common shares, says the company, makes Organigram the largest cannabis company with a combined market share of 12.4%. Motif holds 21.2% and 9.4% share of the Canadian vape and infused pre-roll markets, respectively, according to data from Hifyre.
This will mean the combined companies will have a combined market share of 21.7% for vapes, 9.6% for pre-rolls, including 16% for infused pre-rolls, 14.1% for concentrates, 21.6% in the hash category, 11.2% in cannabis flower and 47% in milled flower, and a 19.2% market share of cannabis gummies.
“This deal is about a leading public cannabis company joining forces with Canada’s top private licensed producer,” said Paolo De Luca, Chief Strategy Officer at Organigram in a press release. “We are extremely excited about leveraging our combined competitive advantages and respective market positions to continue to grow in Canada and beyond.”
Located in Aylmer, Ontario, Motif is a Canadian leader in the vape and infused pre-roll categories with a portfolio of brands like BOXHOT and Debunk, Boondocks, and Rizlers, and wholesale sales and services for external brands. The company grew from $35 million in net revenue in 2022 to $79 million in 2023 and has generated approximately $86 million in the past year. Motif also has a storage facility in London, Ontario, which Organigram plans to use as a distribution hub.
The Aylmer facility provides Organigram with monthly production of 1,350 kgs of distillate, 400 kgs of high-value hydrocarbon extracts, 750k infused pre-rolls capacity, and 1 million units of vape filling capacity.
The cannabis extractor can produce 1,350 kg of distillate per month and 400 kg of hydrocarbon-derived extracts. The company can also produce THCA, an increasingly popular cannabinoid among consumers.
Said Beena Goldenberg, CEO of Organigram: “The highly complementary acquisition of Motif establishes Organigram as Canada’s largest cannabis company by market share and accelerates our vision to be a leading cannabis company across all major categories, driven by a relentless focus on the consumer of today and tomorrow.”
Mario Naric, CEO and Founder of Motif, said: “This is a landmark transaction in our industry and the Motif team is thrilled to be joining forces with Organigram to create Canada’s undisputed leader with deep capabilities in all major cannabis categories.”
Organigram reported net revenue of $41.1 million for the third quarter of 2024 and net income of $2.8 million, compared to a loss of $213.5 million in the same reporting period in 2023.
The majority of the company’s net revenue for the three months ended June 30, 2024, came from sales in Canada’s non-medical “adult use” market ($36.5 million or 89%), while just 6% of sales ( $8.3 million) were to the international markets and 1% of sales ($325,000) were into Canada’s medical cannabis market.
Sale of cannabis flower was 58% of Organigram’s business in Q3 2024, at an average cost of $1.50 per gram, down from $1.67 per gram in the same quarter in 2023 and $1.51 from Q2 2024.
In May 2024, Organigram announced a three-year supply agreement with Avida Medical in the UK, with the potential to supply 1,700 kilograms of indoor-grown dried cannabis flower to Avida. In June, it announced a plan to acquire a minority stake in Berlin-based cannabis company Sanity Group, expanding Organigram’s footprint in Europe.
This is the second of three rounds of funding from BT DE Investments Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of BAT. Plans for the partnership between British American Tobacco and Organigram were announced in late 2023, with an investment of nearly $125 million from BAT.
At the time, Organigram said most of the $124.6 million investment would be used to create a strategic investment pool named Jupiter, focusing on emerging cannabis opportunities, including geographic expansion.
The first round of funding closed on January 23, 2024. The third round of funding is expected in early 2025.
Motif was the largest privately owned cannabis business in Canada prior to the completion of the transaction.
Marijuana farmers in the state of California revealed that the weather during this year’s growing season was favorable, which may improve yields and in turn, prices.
Judi Nelson, co-founder of Sol Spirit Farm, revealed that the summer was good for them, noting that moisture from spring rain prevented wildfires. The overall threat of wildfires was low this year for cannabis farmers, which allowed them to focus on their crops more. In the last couple of years, these fires have greatly impacted farmers, with some experiencing extensive crop loss.
Flower from Sol Spirit is primarily sold in the firm’s compostable packaging, which Nelson reveals tells their story. The farm’s plants are certified regenerative, which permits the firm to price its flower higher than other brands.
There are tiers to sun-grown cannabis products; top shelf, mids and mass-produced. Most of the products that come from California’s Emerald Triangle are top shelf.
Sol Spirit flower is priced almost 3.5 times more than mass-produced flower because of the time the firm puts into its product as well as product quality. Marijuana cultivated in the sun is said to have an earthy aromas and rich terpene profiles, which enthusiasts note are more natural in comparison to strains cultivated indoors.
Nelson believes that prices for craft flower will increase especially as some players exit the market, noting that consumers want high quality flower that’s not been exposed to any impurities.
Nya Hessler of Amaranth Farms expects that despite an abundance of craft marijuana flower in the market, product will be going for roughly $500 per pound. While this is good, taxes for sun grown marijuana remain high.
Ironside Gardens owner Peter Maric has proposed that excise tax for all sun grown products be reduced to 5-7%. This comes after an announcement was made that marijuana excise taxes would increase to 19% from 15% in 2025.
Following the pesticide scandal that occurred earlier in the year, demand for sun-grown marijuana is also expected to increase. To prevent lower demand from consumers, some brands have eliminated the use of organic pesticides in their operations. Autumn Brands, based in Carpinteria, is one of these brands. The firm has fully transitioned to an all-natural marijuana pest management system that uses ladybugs native to the state.
This comes after it also threw away thousands upon thousands of cannabis plants that had been sprayed with organic pesticides after research demonstrated that these chemicals were harmful when heated.
Industry actors and allied players like Innovative Industrial Properties Inc. (NYSE: IIPR) are glad that there is some good news coming out regarding the cannabis industry in California since several challenges, such as high taxes, have been weighing down licensed players in that jurisdiction.
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Mississippi’s medical cannabis businesses are prohibited from advertising on billboards or any other platforms due to marijuana’s federal status as an illegal substance, according to a recent decision by an appeals court.
The owner of Tru Source Medical Marijuana, a medical cannabis store operating in Olive Branch, Mississippi, contested this restriction. He claimed that since state law allows the sale of marijuana, the First Amendment should protect medical cannabis businesses’ advertising rights.
However, on Friday, a three-judge bench from the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the dispensary owner. The court referred to the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA), which has classified marijuana as an illegal drug since 1970, banning its production, distribution, and possession. The ruling emphasized that federal law takes precedence and that Mississippi’s restrictions on advertising are consistent with this overarching legal framework.
“Mississippi is not subject to constitutional barriers in limiting commercial speech that pertains to unlawful activities,” the judges stated in their decision.
The state attorney general welcomed the ruling, describing the state’s advertising restrictions as reasonable. MaryAsa Lee, a spokesperson for the office, highlighted that the decision reinforces the state’s efforts to regulate medical cannabis advertising through various media, including broadcast, digital platforms, and print.
Tru Source CEO and founder, Clarence Cocroft II, filed a lawsuit in 2023 to contest the ban on advertising through text messages, mass emails, social media, broadcast, billboards, or print.
Cocroft expressed frustration over the decision, noting that the restrictions make it challenging to reach potential clients and educate the public about the state’s medical cannabis program. Despite the setback, Cocroft stated that he remains determined to continue advocating for equitable treatment of medical cannabis businesses.
Although direct advertising is heavily restricted, the state does allow businesses to maintain social media profiles and websites that provide information about their locations and product offerings. Additionally, businesses can list their information in business directories and phone books and include marijuana imagery in their logos. They are also permitted to sponsor advocacy or charitable events.
Cocroft’s legal representation, the Institute for Justice, a not-for-profit law firm, is exploring further legal options. The firm is considering asking the appeals court to review the case or potentially escalating the matter to the apex court. Ari Bargil, an attorney from the firm, criticized the contradictory stance of the state, arguing that it’s unreasonable to create a legal market for medical cannabis while relying on federal law to restrict communication between businesses and consumers.
Established marijuana firms like Canopy Growth Corp. (NASDAQ: CGC) (TSX: WEED) operating in other jurisdictions understand the frustrations that come with marijuana advertising restrictions in a highly competitive environment. The industry hopes that firms in Mississippi find creative ways to reach their potential clients without breaking any existing laws.
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(Globe Newswire) Toronto – Avicanna Inc. a commercial stage, international biopharmaceutical company focused on the commercialization of cannabinoid-based products, is pleased to announce the initial delivery of its proprietary topical products into Europe as a part of the previously announced exclusive supply agreement with a multinational pharmaceutical company.
“We are pleased to compete first delivery of our products and are excited about the potential of these innovative products in the German and European over the counter markets. These formulations were developed though our Canadian R&D platform and manufactured through South American operations with our source of cannabinoids including, CBD and CBG. This combination acts as a validation of our long-term business model and international expansion plans for our proprietary and evidence-based products,” stated Aras Azadian, CEO at Avicanna Inc.
The products include 3% CBD localized cream and the 2% CBD and 0.5% CBG transdermal gel utilizing the Company’s patented deep tissue technology. The 3% CBD localized cream, as well as the 2% CBD and 0.5% CBG transdermal gel products completed human irritation and real-world evidence studies.
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The multinational pharmaceutical company manufactures and markets a wide range of pharmaceutical products across 4 continents and has established commercial infrastructure in the European region that will be utilized for the initial launch of the selected products. [They have] committed to launch the initial products in 6 European countries during 2025 with expectations of further expanding throughout the European region shortly after.
Avicanna has earned licensing fees for meeting specific milestones this year. Additionally, the parties agreed to specific minimum order quantities and commercial milestones for the multinational pharmaceutical company to maintain the exclusivity.
The products were manufactured using the Avicanna’s Colombian operations while utilizing Avicanna’s own source of Aureus branded organic and sustainable cannabinoids including CBD and CBG from its majority owned subsidiary, Santa Marta Golden Hemp S.A.S.
Avicanna carries out its operations in compliance with all applicable laws in the jurisdictions in which it operates.
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About Avicanna:
Avicanna is a commercial-stage international biopharmaceutical company focused on the advancement and commercialization of cannabinoid-based products and formulations for the global medical and pharmaceutical market segments. Avicanna has an established scientific platform including R&D and clinical development leading to the commercialization of more than thirty proprietary, evidence-based finished products and supporting four commercial stage business pillars.
“Only a few know, how much one must know to know how little one knows.” ~Werner Heisenberg
The concept of “Meta male” isn’t a term with a widely accepted or standardized definition in social or psychological literature, but if we were to extrapolate from the terms “Alpha” and “Beta” and apply the prefix “Meta-” (which often implies something beyond, over, or transcending), we could infer some characteristics. Here’s a speculative take on what a Meta male might embody, contrasting with the more traditional Alpha and Beta male archetypes.
1.) Transcendence:
“Elevate yourself above the battlefield.” ~Robert Greene
As a meta male you move beyond traditional power dynamics. You’re not focused on being at the top or in support roles but on being where you can most effectively contribute or innovate. Which is above the battlefield playing the Infinite Game of life despite the petty finite games of Alphas and Betas.
Understanding that everything is connected to everything else, you cultivate ruthless nonattachment. Perched up high, seeing with “Over Eyes,” counterbalancing with Middle Way Dynamics, you personify wholeness through otherworldliness.
2.) Adaptability:
“All fixed set patterns are incapable of adaptability or pliability. The truth is outside of all fixed patterns.” ~Bruce Lee
You are highly adaptable to various social, professional, or personal environments without losing identity or purpose. You are a Nietzschean self-overcomer par excellence. Flexible and open, you are adept at adapting to the vicissitudes of change.
Understanding that a mind set in its ways cannot respond effectively to new challenges or information, you encourage openness to new ideas, flexibility in thought and action, and a readiness to unlearn or alter your approach when necessary. It’s a call to avoid dogmatism and embrace a more fluid, responsive way of living and thinking.
3.) Integrative:
“Wholeness is not achieved by cutting off a portion of one’s being, but by integration of the contraries.” ~Jung
You balance traits typically associated with Alpha and Beta males. You can lead when necessary but also support and collaborate equally well.
You understand the vital importance of shadow work. Where most Betas would avoid the shadow and most Alphas would fight against it, you integrate it. You initiate the monster. You baptize the beast. You assimilate the demon. You honor your inner darkness by shining its uncomfortable blacklight into the blinding light of the all-too-comfortable world.
4.) Self-awareness:
“I want to keep smashing myself until I am whole.” ~Elias Canetti
You have a deep understanding of yourself, including strengths, weaknesses, desires, and fears, which allows for personal growth beyond societal expectations. You are hyperaware that the Self is masks all the way down perceiving delusions all the way up. Such higher awareness gives you the ability to question yourself to the nth degree.
This leads to the ability to overcome yourself. Self-overcoming becomes a chisel for the hardened beliefs within you. You use it to humble yourself, to destroy your delusions, to unsettle your settled mind, to shock your chakras, and to recondition your cultural conditioning.
5.) Emotional maturity:
“The emotionally intelligent person knows that love is a skill, not a feeling, and will require trust, vulnerability, generosity, humor, sexual understanding, and selective resignation.” ~Alain de Botton
You manage emotions effectively by not suppressing them like an Alpha or being overly influenced by them like a Beta. Instead, you transform them into high art through emotional alchemy.
You transform the emotion of fear into courageous action for example. This can be applied to almost any emotion. You Feel grief but act with steadfastness. You feel envy but act with emulation. You feel triggered but act with curiosity. You feel vengeful but act with forgiveness.
6.) Innovative:
“Great men are like eagles and build their nest on some lofty solitude.” ~Arthur Schopenhauer
You look for new ways to solve problems. Often outside of traditional paths.
You are a pathfinder. You have the courage to do the taboo thing, the audacious thing, the insouciant thing, the eccentric thing, the unpopular thing, realizing that without your unique spark, no outside the box thought, no otherworldly imagination, no arguments with God, no crucifixion of the past could be possible.
You wield Innovation like a question mark sword, realizing that asking difficult questions will always be more important than receiving simple answers.
7.) Big-picture leadership:
“As anywhere else in the world, the unwritten law defeated the written one.” ~Herman Hesse
Your leadership style is transcendent. It’s elevated. You see the big picture. You see how the unwritten law will always overrule the written law, and you lead by this example.
You realize that true leaders do not go where the path may lead; they go where there is no path and leave a trail. The unique function of your style of leadership is the elevation of perspective and the cultivation of the third eye. Being confident in this regard, you stand out from the crowd and fulfill your role as visionary.
You become an icon of iconoclasm, a force of nature that leads by example whether or not anybody else decides to “follow.”
8.) Resilience:
“Let me fall if I must fall. The one I am becoming will catch me.” ~Baal Shem Tov
You don’t just endure challenges, you grow from them, learning and adapting along the way. You transform demons into diamonds, wounds into wisdom, and setbacks into steppingstones.
You are antifragile. You understand that pressure is needed to forge the diamond. Not comfort, not security, not safety, but pressure. So it goes also for the rough diamond of the soul. Pressure is needed to smooth out the edges; to make it more resilient, more robust, more antifragile.
9.) Relational:
“The only way of loving a person is to love them without hope.” ~Walter Benjamin
You value deep, meaningful connections over shallow, transactional relationships, understanding that genuine connection is a two-way street and love is never a product to be owned but an energy to be shared.
You love without expectation, without hope, without an agenda. You allow others to love the way they must love. You let go of your ego’s attachment to love. You practice agape-love, cosmic, transcendent, and nonattached. You love at the edge of the human condition: fallible, uncertain, hungry, and in a frenzy.
10.) Holistic success:
“Now I am nimble, now I fly, now I see myself under myself, now a god dances within me.” ~Nietzsche
Your success isn’t just financial or hierarchical but includes mental health, personal fulfillment, spirituality, and contributions to society or community through high art.
Beyond codependence and independence, there is the holistic state of interdependence. This is where you reside. Your next-door neighbor is the mighty Phoenix. Together, you practice the art of the life-death-rebirth process.
Through your absolute nonattachment, you see how everything is attached to everything else. The entire story of the human leitmotif unfolds below you, glimmering with the promise of hidden gems, diamonds in the rough, gold in the mud—all just waiting to be plucked by someone nonattached enough to seize it, utilize it, and transform it into a magic elixir for the “tribe.”
Gary Z McGee, a former Navy Intelligence Specialist turned philosopher, is the author of Birthday Suit of God and The Looking Glass Man. His works are inspired by the great philosophers of the ages and his wide-awake view of the modern world.
This article (10 Signs You May Be a Meta Male) was originally created and published by Self-inflicted Philosophy and is printed here under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Gary Z McGee and self-inflictedphilosophy.com. It may be re-posted freely with proper attribution, author bio, and this statement of copyright.
Living in the mountains of Quebec, Canada, has its perks. Mostly tucked away from the urban sprawl, we are surrounded by natural beauty and truly experience all four seasons. The summers are busy with locals and tourists enjoying outdoor activities, cultural events, and an abundance of farmers’ markets. Eating locally grown food is easy in the summer and fall. But after the colorful leaves fade in October, the outdoor markets pack it in for another season, and the snow flies. If you’re on skis or snowshoes in Quebec, there is no shortage of tracks to follow through the woods. But the abundance of fresh, local food hits a dead end. That’s life in colder climates; most farmers cram their growing into six months, and in the winter, they rest.
Is It Possible to Grow Vegetables During Winter?
It doesn’t have to be this way; small-scale, regenerative farmers Jean-Martin Fortier and Catherine Sylvestre are leading the change. Fortier co-founded the research farm, la Ferme des Quatre-Temps (The Four-Season Farm) in Hemmingford, QC; Sylvestre, a professional agronomist, is the farm manager and trains future farmers. They have co-authored The Winter Market Gardener: A Successful Grower’s Handbook for Year-Round Harvests to help improve the agricultural landscape with more all-season gardens.
“Our goal is to show how we can eat locally year-round,” explains Sylvestre. “We want to develop techniques that allow people in northern climates always to buy food in their community and never have to import any vegetables.”
Sounds dreamy, doesn’t it? It also seems impossible for anyone looking at a winter storm rage outside their windows. But growing vegetables and harvesting them throughout the cold seasons is doable. Sylvestre and Fortier have spent years testing various crops and growing methods on their farm; they know it works. They successfully grow over 30 vegetables at la Ferme des Quatre-Temps in the winter! While the book’s target audience includes small-scale farmers and market gardeners living in cooler climates, home growers can apply the same ideas and principles in their garden beds. The book even offers a small-scale home garden plan for the fall.
“What we wanted was to [share that knowledge] so that farmers can start at the point where we are and not have to do all of these trials and repeat the mistakes we made because they can be quite costly,” says Sylvestre.
Is Winter Gardening Costly?
Many people in cold regions assume winter growing has a hefty price tag. However, The Winter Market Gardener offers economical solutions that don’t involve state-of-the-art greenhouses and expensive electricity bills. Instead, Fortier and Sylvestre discuss using simple shelters to protect crops from the cold. These can be used individually or in frigid temperatures, combined and layered like an onion. From caterpillar and low tunnels to permanent high tunnels and row covers, the handbook explores each option, offers advice on creating and maintaining the perfect environment, and provides results on how each performs compared to a heated greenhouse.
Using the right structures makes winter growing possible and affordable, and Sylvestre adds that crop selection is also critical to success. Did you know you can increase a plant’s cold hardiness? That’s another riveting topic Fortin and Sylvestre explore in their book.
“We always want to grow food that is in season,” she says. “So what we grow in the winter are vegetables that like the cold. We won’t be heating greenhouses at 20-25°C to grow tomatoes; it doesn’t make sense, is expensive, and takes a lot of energy.”
Winter Crop Selection: Vegetables That Grow During Winter
The winter garden should include two crop categories. Carrots, parsnips, potatoes, and rutabagas are root vegetables; planting them in August is optimal for harvest in the fall. When everything is covered with white in the winter, Sylvestre suggests going green. Swiss chard, kale, arugula, mesclun, and Asian greens are well-suited to colder temperatures and produce yields with a low energy supply, busting the myth that heat is the deciding factor in winter growing.
“I’m focusing on Asian vegetables because they will grow even when there isn’t a lot of light,” she says. “This makes all the difference because our biggest limiting factor in the winter is not having a lot of light.”
A greenhouse is necessary to grow and harvest throughout the winter. A tempo or car shelter will also do the trick. They don’t have to be heated; Sylvestre recommends planting your greens in September and adding row covers inside the structure of your choice for added heat. What’s paramount is that the covers be transparent so that as much light as possible gets through, ensuring that the crops can survive when temperatures dip to the minus 20s.
“People need to see with their own eyes that it’s possible,” she says. “When you [enter] the unheated greenhouse in the morning, it’s crazy; all vegetables are frozen. But when the sunlight [returns], everything thaws, and the vegetables look luxurious again. It’s like magic.”
Changing Tides
Sylvestre recommends growing spinach if you’ve never tried gardening in the winter. It’s exceptionally cold-hardy and easy to grow. But be warned that growing a successful crop in the cold is addictive. Sylvestre says she’s met many small-scale farmers who have read her book and started experimenting with cold-season crops. They’re waking from their winter slumber, and some are flipping the script and slowing down in the summer to focus more on growing in the cold.
“In the summer, they’ll grow all their storage crops, and in the winter, they will grow their leafy greens,” she explains. “They don’t have to compete with all of the other farmers in the summer, and they can focus on the winter season where there is almost no competition.”
The Winter Market Gardener says farmers can be profitable by following the models at la Ferme des Quatre-Temps. They will succeed with the right timing, spacing, crops, and covers. Sylvestre encourages them to consider packing their fresh greens into weekly CSA boxes or selling their harvests to restaurants striving to make their menus more appealing with local food. A word of advice? Allow yourself to move slowly in the winter; don’t try to keep up with the summertime rush because it’s impossible.
“Everything in the winter is so slow,” explains Sylvestre. “The plant growth is super slow. You can take your time [and] don’t have to rush anything (…) It’s nice to have two different paces. [In the winter] when there’s no sun, we go home. It’s different from the summer, which is always go, go, go.”
Making it Simple
Growing food throughout the winter can seem overwhelming, but The Winter Market Gardener is excellent for anyone interested in boosting local food security. Fortin and Sylvestre have been careful not to be overly scientific or complicated, breaking years of research, successes, and failures into an easy-to-follow and enjoyable read. It wasn’t easy, but Sylvestre knows it was worth it.
“We like difficult things,” she laughs. “We were motivated by that.”
She’s witnessing a revolution in cold-climate vegetable production and says the future is bright for Quebec farming. She’s noticing more small market gardens run by young people popping up throughout the province and believes that farms have the potential to become community hubs once again. So, give it a try; read The Winter Market Gardener and marvel at the magic of growing greens in the cold. And if you find local farmers near you that grow throughout the winter, please support them. They’re the future of agriculture.
For more information on the incredible work at la Ferme des Quatre-Temps, check out fermequatretemps.com.Order a copy of The Winter Market Gardener: A Successful Grower’s Handbook for Year-Round Harvests here.
New legislation in PEI is clarifying that the province’s 2021 ban on the sale of flavoured vaping products does not apply to the sale of cannabis vapes.
However, a representative for PEI Cannabis tells StratCann that there has been no change in policy in regard to what products PEI Cannabis Management Corporation (PEICMC) can sell. A request for clarification of whether any relevant changes could be coming in the future in the wake of this new legislation was not provided.
Bill 71, An Act to Amend the Tobacco and Electronic Smoking Device Sales and Access Act, was introduced in PEI’s legislature on November 7, 2024. The legislation includes two amendments that clarify the 2021 amendments to the province’s Tobacco and Electronic Smoking Device Sales and Access Act and regulations. Bill 71 passed and received Royal Assent on Friday, November 29, 2024, although it has yet to come into force.
Those amendments point out that the 2021 amendments do not affect the authority of the province’s Cannabis Management Corporation under the Cannabis Management Corporation Act to sell, offer to sell, expose for sale and have in its possession for sale, to persons who may lawfully purchase cannabis items that are related to or used in the consumption of cannabis.
This includes the ability to sell various cannabis products, clarified Nichola Hewitt, solicitor and legislative specialist with the Department of Health and Wellness, during discussions about the bill on November 8. In response to a question from Matthew B. MacFarlane, Green MLA for Borden-Kinkora, about the sale of cannabis distillate vape cartridges, Hewitt said the new amendments address this.
“The Cannabis Management Corporation Act sets out what Cannabis PEI can sell, the products. Right now, as a result of the private member bill that came out several years ago, there was some confusion, and this is clarifying it,” she explained. “Papers are an example.
“Papers are deemed to be part of the tobacco-related products, so Cannabis PEI is saying, ‘Well, you’re governing the papers, so we can’t really sell that or the distillate.
“So, the amendment makes it absolutely clear: something that falls under the authority of the Cannabis Management Corporation Act, this act doesn’t apply to that.”
PEI-based cannabis brand, FIGR, which sells cannabis vapes that are available for purchase in other parts of the country, was briefly mentioned during discussion of the bill by Mathew M. MacFarlane, Green Party MLA for the riding of Borden-Kinkora. MacFarlane noted that FIGR, the brand connected to cannabis producer Canada’s Island Garden, cannot sell its vapes in its home province through PEI Cannabis.
Cannabis vape pens have been increasingly gaining market share in the legal market. Although dried flower has maintained the its top spot, its overall market share has been declining as inhaled extracts, especially vapes, have been steadily increasing. Sales of dried cannabis declined from 71% market share in 2021-2022 to 64.9% in 2022-2023.
Based on the most recent annual figures from Statistics Canada, the largest contributor to the increase in overall cannabis sales across Canada was inhaled extracts, which rose by 59% in the 2022 to 2023 fiscal year. This category accounted for 67.6% of the $600 million increase in sales from the previous year, or more than $405 million.
In 2022, the Biden Administration initiated efforts to reevaluate how cannabis is classified under federal law, leading the DEA to start a formal rule-making procedure this year.
If the agency ultimately agrees with the Health and Human Services (HHS) Department’s recommendation for reclassification, the effects at the state level are likely to be minimal. Without broader federal changes, state programs for medical and recreational marijuana will remain at odds with federal law. Current regulations provide states with little leeway to legalize substances classified under Schedule III.
Consequently, the agency is unlikely to issue licenses to state-regulated cannabis businesses, and the FDA is not expected to approve botanical marijuana as a prescription drug. This means the legal status of the state marijuana market will likely remain as uncertain as it is today.
However, the situation in Washington, D.C., is distinct. Reclassifying marijuana could significantly impact the local cannabis market in the country’s capital. This is due to a budget provision—the Harris rider—introduced in 2014 by Maryland Republican Representative Andy Harris.
The amendment, attached to D.C.’s annual appropriations bill, aimed to limit the District’s ability to implement broader marijuana policies. It was introduced after the D.C. Council decriminalized marijuana possession and voters passed Initiative 71, which legalized cannabis use, possession, and limited home cultivation.
When the Harris rider was enacted, D.C.’s non-voting Congressional delegate, Eleanor Holmes Norton, pointed out that the provision restricted the use of funds to “enact” but not to “carry out or enact” cannabis policies. This allowed the state Attorney General to affirm that the measure could proceed as self-enacting legislation, enabling certain cannabis-related activities without the need for additional government action.
Since the measure didn’t legalize marijuana sales or establish a framework for regulatory oversight, D.C. has been unable to regulate recreational cannabis sales, as doing so would require new legislation prohibited by the Harris rider.
This legal limitation has contributed to the growth of a gray market in D.C., where businesses comply with Initiative 71 by “gifting” marijuana with the purchase of other items. These operations lack the consumer protections seen in other states with regulated cannabis markets. To address this issue, the D.C. Council has focused on expanding its medical cannabis program as it cannot directly regulate recreational sales under the current law.
Rescheduling cannabis could present an opportunity for D.C. to achieve comprehensive cannabis regulation. The Harris rider specifically prohibits the use of funds to regulate substances classified as Schedule 1 or certain tetrahydrocannabinols. If marijuana is moved to Schedule III, this restriction may no longer apply.
Even if the Council moves forward with legislation to regulate recreational cannabis, opposition from some members of Congress is expected. However, unless Congress takes direct action to block such measures, rescheduling could give D.C. the authority to establish a regulated cannabis market and regain control of its marijuana policy.
The entire marijuana industry, including entities like Cronos Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CRON) (TSX: CRON), awaits the final rule-making decision that the DEA will announce. That decision could reshape the trajectory of the marijuana industry in the U.S.
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