The recently signed farm bill in the United States also presents opportunity for edible and functional drinks makers, as the bill makes most CBD legal, although companies are still not supposed to add CBD to food or drinks, and the Food and Drug Administration has announced that it is working to get products to legally enter the market.
In Canada, reports of our cannabis supply shortage is expected to last more than 5 years, as demand for edibles suck up supply from licensed producers. Other reports suggest there is no critical supply shortage. The difference in reports are mind boggling. According to Health Canada spokesperson Tammy Jarbeau, inventories were nearly 18 times greater than monthly sales. And that federally licensed producer capacity is at 800,000 kilograms, enough to satisfy demand.
Something seems to be missing here, as there really is no incentive to hold back inventory that can be sold to meet current demand, unless they are stockpiling for edible legalization(?) and selling at a super-high premium relative to dry or oil-based forms. George Robinson, CEO of RavenQuest BioMed (CSE: RQB; OTCQB: RVVQF; FRA: 1IT), was recently quoted in a BNN Bloomberg article as saying that Canadian pot producers will need to grow as much as 6 million kilograms of cannabis annual in order to meet domestic demand for dried flower, edible products and other extractables that are hitting the market later this year. Technically speaking, Robinson notes that cannabis extraction efficiency is between 12 and 26 percent. Which means that only 12-26 grams of oil are produced using 100 grams of dried cannabis. With the shortage currently reported to be about 600,000 kilograms of dried flower, this number is expected to compound post edible legalization. What does that mean for consumers? Well, unless Canada plans to import edibles or cannabis to make edibles, there will be shortages. And for those looking to try a brownie or cookie, you may be out of luck, fighting the guy or girl beside you in the aisles, or stocking up when they are available.
There have been recent reports that despite Trudeau’s promise that edibles will be legal no later than October 17th, Bill Blair (who leads the cannabis legalization process) suggested that federal regulations due by October 17th are not the last step in rolling out edible products for sale, and the later that regulation is finalized, the later provinces begin preparing for sales. Once the regulations are finalized, companies are required to give the government 60 days’ notice to begin selling edible products, although some (I’d be shocked if not all) are already preparing for this in advance of October 17th. The proposed legislation is summarized here: Proposed Regulations.
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