More people in B.C. buying pot from licensed shops, new study finds

A new study suggests the number of cannabis consumers in British Columbia who turned to unlicensed stores to purchase the substance in 2021 was less than a third of the number in 2018.

The B.C. Stats study commissioned by the B.C. Cannabis Secretariat shows 17 per cent of the survey's 25,000 participants reported buying pot from an unlicensed store last year, down from 56 per cent in 2018.

About nine per cent of B.C. marijuana consumers bought from a dealer in 2021, down from 16 per cent before Canada legalized recreational cannabis in 2018, the survey found.

It also found 71 per cent of B.C. marijuana consumers reported making their pot purchases at licensed retailers, while 40 per cent got the substance from friends, 19 per cent from family, and 14 per cent grew their own.

Products that are ingested, such as edibles, drinks and oils, have become more popular since marijuana was legalized, according to the study, although smoking the dried flower is still the most popular way to consume cannabis.

The B.C. Cannabis Secretariat co-ordinates non-medical cannabis policy across the provincial government, according to the government's website.

The study's results are based on self-reported data, which can skew results because cannabis and its long history of illegality has long carried a stigma.

The report says there may be an increased willingness to report cannabis use as the substance becomes more socially acceptable, but data sources that do not rely on self-reports have also shown an increase in cannabis use among people in B.C.