Cannabis Health Insider

Cannabis retail stores were ordered to close on Friday by the Ontario government after they were no longer deemed essential, in the government’s updated essential businesses list.

Officials have reported that legal cannabis stores will temporarily be allowed to offer delivery and curbside pickup services, just days after the order of the Ontario government for the closing of cannabis retail stores due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The grant of permission through an emergency order by the provincial government was indeed an attempt to fight the illegal cannabis market, according to a statement by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) on Tuesday. According to a spokesperson from the Ministry of the Attorney General, the cabinet had approved the order and Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Dowdeswell had signed the order into law this afternoon.

Retailers are expected to comply with all the present laws and regulations regarding the sales and delivery of cannabis to sober customers over 19 only.

According to the AGCO staff, after the arrival of the customer at the store for pickup, the store staff will bring the order in its original packaging for the waiting customer, and the transaction will further be captured by the store’s security cameras.

Furthermore, the delivery of cannabis on behalf of the store is only allowed by the licenses retailer or an employee, and the completion of the payment is expected at the time of the order

For online orders, there will be direct delivery and only over 19 customers are allowed to receive it.

Many cannabis consumers, with the inclusion of several workers in the legal industry, had said that they had immediately resorted to purchases from local dealers or even unlicensed online stores, after the order had removed roughly 50 legal cannabis retail stores in the province, from the list of essential businesses late last week, which eventually led to the closing of the stores over the weekend. Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) was the only legal option left for cannabis consumers, which ships its online orders to a post office near the customer.

Several customers that chose to be anonymous told National Observer, that there was a wider selection of products, along with convenience that was offered by the black market. They further added that keeping the COVID-19 pandemic in mind, it was a safer option than the OCS, due to its direct delivery within a couple of hours, while OCS had people lining up in a public space several days after the placement of their orders.

Furthermore, an online petition was signed by over 4,000 Ontarian residents, calling Ontario for the reversal of the closure of cannabis stores.

The directive, which came into force on Tuesday, is expected to last for 14 days according to the statement, and continuation in these services can be expected if an extension of the broader provincial emergency order on business closures is seen.

However, while there will be no issuance of any new retail store authorizations until the government’s emergency order lifts, the continuation of retail operator licenses and store authorization application was expected.

The sales, deliveries, and pickups will occur between 9 am and 11 pm, Monday to Sunday, with 30 grams being the maximum amount of dried cannabis or an equivalent product, per transaction. CannSell certification is mandatory for anyone selling and delivering cannabis products.

Despite the delivery and curbside pickup, the stores will not be open for customers to enter. However, this emergency order will allow sales of cannabis during this pandemic by outlets other than the online Ontario Cannabis Store.

4,726 infected cases of COVID-19 were reported in Ontario by the Ontario government, as of Tuesday morning, out of which there are 153 deaths and 1,802 recovered cases.