Report: Ontario to allow private sector wholesale of cannabis

Ontario’s government plans to loosen its grip on adult-use cannabis distribution and allow private-sector participation.

Currently, recreational marijuana wholesaling in the province is under the sole domain of the government-owned Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS).

According to an email obtained by the Financial Post, “The OCS is moving ahead with expanding its privately-operated third-party centralized distribution network and will introduce flow-through capabilities to the network over time to maximize choice for consumers.”

The newspaper said the OCS will still be involved in wholesale, making it a hybrid model.

The only other province to allow the private sector to distribute and wholesale cannabis is Saskatchewan.

New Brunswick recently said it is also planning to move away from its government-run system in favor of a private model.

More details about Ontario’s plan are available here.