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New BC gov’t cannabis ad spreads on Instagram

Published on October 28, 2021 by oz. staff

The BC government’s ‘Buy Legal, Buy Local’ ad campaign is being promoted through Instagram.

While you can’t find it on the province’s Instagram page, it does pop up as an ad while you scroll through your feed.

Instagram hasn’t always been friendly to cannabis brands. For example, the oz. has had its Instagram account banned in the past due to its content.

If you interact with the ad, you’re offered a link to ‘learn more’ that takes you to a BC government webpage, which includes a link to a map of legal retail stores, where to find information about how to access legal medicinal cannabis, and how legal cannabis is safer for the consumer and our communities.

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ORIGINAL: Oct. 27, 2021

We may have have our first look at the BC government’s approach to its newly announced ad campaign encouraging people to buy legal weed.

And it’s underwhelming.

A “Buy Legal, Buy Local” ad was posted to the BC government’s Instagram over the weekend, and it appears to be set to private.

  • RELATED: BC to launch a ‘Buy Legal’ campaign

The brief video shows unbranded products that display the THC sign. None of the products show the duty sticker or the Health Canada warnings.

It shows a licenced cannabis retailer logo, accompanied by the words “Support legal cannabis retailers, not organized crime.’

It’s much more bland than the Ontario Cannabis Store’s new ad, which earned national attention.

So far it’s had about a dozen views.

The B.C. government announced in mid-October it would launch a ‘Buy Legal’ ad campaign.

The ad campaign was to emphasize that buying from licensed stores helps strengthen local economies and keeps profits out of the hands of illegal operators and organized crime. The province also said it would encourage people to buy regulated and tested products and link to a map of legal stores.