The CCSI was assessed at C$5.20 per gram this week, up 0.4% from last week’s C$5.18 per gram. This week’s price equates to US$1,815 per pound at the current exchange rate.
Each week, Business of Cannabis delivers a series of insights from our partners at Cannabis Benchmarks®.
This week we examine how legal cannabis sales in Canada have impacted alcohol sales. With the legalization of recreational cannabis in October 2018, some alcoholic beverage companies stated that they feared they would see a reduction in sales, as consumers of legal age may opt to substitute cannabis for alcohol.
Below is monthly data from October 2018 through early this year, showing sales of both categories. The chart illustrates that alcohol and cannabis sales were both growing steadily up until 2021. (The spike in alcohol sales in March 2020 was due to bulk buying ahead of COVID-19 lockdowns.) Alcohol sales dropped in early 2021 and leveled off a few months before cannabis sales began to plateau in late summer 2021.
That being said, since January 2020, monthly alcohol sales have grown by C$215M to C$2.27B, while cannabis sales grew by a little less – C$182M – to reach C$282M. Additionally, cannabis sales’ share of the total dollars spent towards alcohol and cannabis has increased steadily since legalization. Currently, cannabis’ share stands at 12.9% of the total spend of the combined categories.
Source: Canada Cannabis Spot Index, Cannabis Benchmarks
See previous weekly updates from Cannabis Benchmarks:
- Understanding the current cannabis store county in Canada right now
- Canadian cannabis market fundamentals right now
- How the growth of outdoor cannabis cultivation impacts Canadian cannabis
- Canadian cannabis retail store count right now
- Flattening cannabis sales part of a common trend?
- Cannabis sales and store insights from BC
- Cannabis store count in Alberta right now
- A look at monthly cannabis sales in Canada
- How to compare annual cumulative cannabis sales in Canada
- Canadian cannabis consumer and patient trends right now
- Daily cannabis spend per consumer in BC now
- Canadian retail store counts right now
- A look at average daily cannabis sales in Canada
- Future growth of cannabis retail in Alberta
- Retail store counts in Canada right now
- The mix of cannabis products in Ontario right now
- How to understand legal and illicit cannabis sales
- Comparing legal and illicit cannabis purchases right now
- A look at cannabis retail store counts in Canada
- A look at daily cannabis retail sales in Canada
- Legacy and legal cannabis sales three years after legalization?
- How to understand cannabis’ impact on alcohol sales in Canada
- Understanding cannabis retail store growth in Canada
- A look at average monthly spend per cannabis consumer
- A look at processing licenses issued by Health Canada
- A look at cultivation licenses issued by Health Canada
- Understanding medical versus recreational sales right now
- A look at daily cannabis sales by Province
- How to view dry cannabis sales across Canada
- A look at percentage of legal versus illicit cannabis sales
- A look at the pace of growth for cannabis retail
- A look at monthly cannabis sales in Ontario
- What is the optimal number of cannabis stores in Canada?
- How to compare daily cannabis retail sales by Province
- Understanding the impact of cannabis on alcohol sales in Canada
- A look at cannabis retail store count by Province
- A look at cannabis user statistics in Canada
