Features

Canadians want cannabis modernization, but are let down

Published on November 14, 2025 by Pat Bulmer

Photo: Contributed/Instagram/markjcarney

Polls showing Canadians support modernizing regulations to help the cannabis industry grow apparently came along too late for the federal government.

Abacus Data conducted a poll for cannabis company Organigram Global. It showed Canadians not only support helping the industry, but they see no political downside to doing so.

Even so, there was close to nothing about cannabis in the recent federal budget.

The budget “once again ignores the urgent needs of Canada’s legal cannabis sector and fails to address the broken policy framework that continues to undermine one of the country’s most promising industries,” said industry group Cannabis Council of Canada.

“Seven years after legalization, Canada’s cannabis sector continues to face structural

barriers that threaten its viability,” said Paul McCarthy, president of C3 (as it calls itself), in a news release. “By refusing to act, the government is undermining confidence in legalization itself.”

In the Abacus/Organigram poll released six days before the budget, nearly six in 10 respondents (59%) believed the federal government should do more to support jobs and innovation in the sector.

“Canadians are ready for the legal cannabis sector to become a pillar of our economic growth strategy,” said Beena Goldenberg, CEO of Organigram Global. “There’s a clear public mandate for government to modernize how cannabis is treated.”

“At a time when economic headwinds are blowing north from Washington … many Canadians appear ready to double down on homegrown economic sectors that can offer stable jobs and export potential,” David Coletto and Kelly Bennett wrote in a poll analysis. “Legal cannabis is increasingly viewed not only as a normalized consumer product but as a sector worth investing in, supporting, and growing.

“The data reveals a clear political opening for federal leaders: cannabis is not a liability; it’s an opportunity,”

The industry was offered a ray of hope when a fall economic statement in 2024 indicated the government would look at eliminating the requirement to have a different excise stamp for each province. But that was under a different Liberal prime minister. The industry says multiple stamps is a costly way to do business.

“One of the clearest examples of government indifference is the failure to move forward with a single national excise stamp for cannabis. This system forces producers to apply and manage 13 separate provincial and territorial stamps — a logistical nightmare that costs the industry an estimated $100 million every year in wasted time, packaging, materials and labour,” C3’s news release said.

“The failure to deliver a single national stamp has become the clearest example of government neglect,” McCarthy said. “It’s an arbitrary system they created — one that benefits no one.”

The cannabis industry would also like excise taxes to be reduced. Tax rates were set on a per gram basis at legalization when it was thought cannabis prices would be a lot higher than they turned out to be.

“Producers still pay a flat $1-per-gram levy that results in an effective tax rate of approximately 34 per cent,” C3 said.

The only item in the budget about cannabis was this: “The budget reduces the amount the government reimburses veterans for medically prescribed cannabis from $8.50 per gram to $6 per gram. The budget document notes the current rate is significantly above the market price,” a Google AI summary notes.

Support for the industry is consistent across regions and political views, the Abacus/Organigram poll shows. A majority—59%—say the legal cannabis sector is an “important contributor to Canada’s economy.”

Nearly six in 10 Canadians (59%) chose “updating the rules” to support economic growth and consumer needs, rather than maintaining strict limits.

Two-thirds (67%) of Liberal voters supported making it easier for the industry to grow, and 68% were open to federal investment in expanding new product categories. More than 70% said it would be a good or OK if Canada became a global leader in wellness-focused cannabis products.

Three-quarters would welcome breakthroughs in cannabis-based pain and anxiety treatments. The same number supported a future in which legal cannabis generates $5 billion in tax revenue.

The poll found 35% of adults reported using cannabis in the past six months, and 32% say they’ve used it in just the last two weeks. In the past six months, 25% of respondents consumed edibles, 16% used dried flower, and others reported using vaping devices, oils and beverages.

The poll also showed:

— 47% want economic departments like Industry or Agriculture involved in cannabis policy decisions alongside Health Canada.

— 43% want tougher enforcement against the illegal market, which is also one of C3’s demands.

— 33% want lower business taxes for producers.

— 31% want the government to support new product categories like edibles, beverages and wellness items.

The survey polled 2,000 Canadian adults between June 25 and July 2. The margin of error for a comparable probability-based random sample would be 2.19%, 19 times out of 20. The data were weighted to ensure the sample matched Canada’s population according to age, gender, and region.

Another poll

Just prior to the budget, C3 commissioned its own poll from Pollara Research and found:

— Canadians continue to accept legalization (65%), with 41% expressing

outright approval, 24% ambivalent, and 29% disapproving.

— Seven in 10 Canadians support the federal government improving efforts to

combat the illegal cannabis market (81%), helping the Canadian cannabis companies to become global leaders (70%), and reducing the excise tax rate (69%).

— Almost seven in 10 Canadians agree the federal (66%) and provincial governments (67%) should reduce hidden taxes on recreational cannabis products.

A report accompanying the survey results stated: “In 2024, Statistics Canada released a report indicating that governments in Canada collect about 40% of the money – or about $2 of every $5 – that Canadians spend to buy legal cannabis … The combination of the need to compete with the illegal market on price and the high hidden federal and provincial taxes on their products has left many of Canada’s cannabis companies in a situation where they are breaking even or losing money on the sales of many of their products.”

“The 2025 budget shows the government’s willingness to invest in the future of Canadian industries,” concluded McCarthy. “It’s time they extend that same vision to the industry they created — one with enormous economic potential, proven success, and deep roots in Canadian innovation.”