Just over 52 million Canadian dollars ($42 million) worth of adult-use cannabis was sold in Newfound last year, 36% more than the previous year, according to the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corp.’s (NLC) year-end report.
NLC, which regulates the province’s 30 licensed cannabis retailers and operates a cannabis distribution center, said fourth-quarter sales for the period ended April 3 amounted to CA$14.2 million.
E-commerce sales, however, struggled to gain traction.
Only CA$872,000 worth of adult-use products were sold online during the fiscal year. While a big improvement over the previous year, it still represents only 1.7% of total sales.
Fourth-quarter e-commerce sales collapsed 35% year-over-year to CA$156,000.
NLC opened five new licensed cannabis retailers last year, helping disrupt the illicit market, the organization said in a news release.
The province issued a request for proposals for another 16 stores, which will bring the total number of stores operating in Newfoundland to 46.
The NLC’s compliance and enforcement team seized CA$4.8 million worth of cannabis products from the illicit market since Canada legalized adult-use marijuana in late 2018, the news release stated.
Net earnings from cannabis sales were CA$11.1 million for the year, up 66.4% year-over-year.
