Learning how to sell edibles legally in Canada can be a profitable business to get involved in, and there are some important things to keep in mind.
In Canada, cannabis edibles are officially legal. Bill C-45, which legalized adult-use cannabis in Canada, was approved on October 17th, 2018. This implies that adult cannabis products, including edibles, are now allowed to buy and consume.
The selling of cannabis oil and other concentrates is also permitted under the new rules. These items can be used to infuse THC or CBD into meals. As more individuals embrace the concept of eating cannabis in a variety of ways, the invention of cannabis-infused edibles has grown in popularity.
What Are Edibles?
Cannabis edibles are cannabis-infused foods. Cannabis’ active element, THC, may be ingested via eating or drinking it.
Cookies, brownies, candies, and other goodies are examples of edibles. THC effects are usually felt within an hour or two after eating edibles. Because edibles are digested differently by the body, they may last longer than smoking or vaping.
Because THC concentrations in edibles vary so widely, it’s crucial to know how much THC is in each product. Even if you’re used to using cannabis frequently, using too much marijuana at once might cause psychosis and anxiety.
The effects of ingesting cannabis edibles are:
- Relaxation
- Hunger
- Appetite
- Faster heart rate
How To Sell Edibles Legally In Canada
Like all business startups, learning how to sell edibles legally in Canada can be a challenging task. In the U.S. alone, the market share of edibles has doubled in the past 8 years, and that’s also expected to multiply to 15% in the next couple of years.
Statistics show that the cannabis industry in Canada is worth around $1.6 billion every year. Edibles are a hugely popular business with no sign of slowing down in the near future.
If you’re trying to learn how to start an edibles business in Canada, there are some important tips you’ll want to keep in mind.
Demographics
The key to starting and growing a cannabis edible business is to know your target market and anticipate the future. A lot of older people have never even heard of edibles before, and if they did, there is a good chance they would be more interested in them.
That’s because the older generation might think that cannabis still needs to be consumed by inhalation, which can be a turnoff for many. Edibles have made experiencing the benefits of cannabis much easier and more discreet than ever before. With a larger demographic, that means the potential for more business.
Educate Consumers
The older generation will approach cannabis edibles with less of an open mind than the younger generation, mainly because of the reputation that has gained in the earlier years. Older people might have heard negative horror stories in the past about people who have consumed too much, and ended up developing a negative perception of it.
Keeping consumers and potential consumers fully educated on cannabis edibles can go a long way in bringing their minds some peace before trying out the product. In the majority of cases, the horror stories surrounding cannabis and edibles have emerged from people purchasing cannabis from unregulated sellers.
Unregulated sellers distributing cannabis edible products could potentially mean that they didn’t spend the time in accurately dosing their products. Without accurate dosing, something like a weed cookie or a weed brownie could contain a tremendous amount of THC, leading to some fairly uncomfortable symptoms in someone that doesn’t have a strong tolerance level.
All it takes is one negative experience to lose one customer. By providing customers with the most information upfront, there is a better chance they will turn into repeat customers down the line.
The regulation of cannabis ensures that all edibles are properly dosed and labeled with information stating the dose on the edible. If you’re learning how to make gummy bears edibles on your own without paying attention to the dosing, that could potentially be a step in the wrong direction, especially if you’re trying to sell edibles legally in Canada.
Educating consumers to start low and go slow with their edibles is the best rule of thumb. Edible products can’t contain higher than 10 mg of THC for every edible. The starting dose of edibles is anywhere between 2.5 – 5 mg.
An edible business should also inform customers how long they can expect to wait before feeling any psychoactive effects. Someone that isn’t aware of the length of time it will take might go ahead and consume 2 more gummy bears because they didn’t feel anything within the first 15 minutes.
This can end up leading to uncomfortable symptoms because they weren’t aware that it takes a longer period of time for edibles to be metabolized in the body.
Edibles can take up to 2 hours before feeling anything depending on the metabolism of the person consuming them.
Another thing that customers need to be aware of is that mixing edibles with other drugs can also lead to uncomfortable symptoms that they could later regret.
Inform Customers By Using Technology
Technology is growing at a rapid rate, and it should be used to keep customers informed on their products. A fully-informed customer that is knowledgeable about all of the risks and benefits that your product has to offer will become more confident in their purchase.
When a customer is more confident in their purchase, it leads to them trusting your company. After that trust is developed, a customer will speak positively about your edible company to their friends and family members, leading to even more customers in the future.
If you’re investing in things like touchscreen menus on the cannabis edible products you have to offer, it can provide customers with upfront information without them having to walk up to a budtender and ask for this information.
Not every customer feels comfortable speaking to a budtender in a cannabis dispensary right off the hop. A company can also use technology to create a website and post all of the relevant information online.
Purchase Limits
All staff in a cannabis edible company in Canada should be aware of the purchase limits that customers can make. You don’t want your company to run into legal troubles by one of your employees accidentally selling 5 pounds of marijuana to someone because they didn’t know the purchase limits.
The daily purchase limits on cannabis products are:
- 5 grams for dried cannabis
- 15 grams for edibles
- 70 grams for THC-infused beverages
- 0.25 grams of concentrate
- 1 seed
Using a point-of-sale system is the easiest and most convenient way to calculate the quantities that people will purchase at any given time. Using a system like this also takes away the risk of human error occurring when a customer makes their purchase.
Final Thoughts
Learning how to make edibles without butter or any other type of cannabis product can be a fun and challenging experience. If you’re looking to turn your love for cannabis edibles into a business, consider keeping these above tips in mind to get you started off in the right direction.
