Magic mushroom store previously shut down by police is back open in Hamilton's east end

In describing an experience on psychedelic drugs, magic-mushroom guru and botanist Terence McKenna once famously said: "The gnomes have learned a new way to say hooray."

Hamilton-area psychedelics enthusiasts may be cheering similarly, as an east-end store selling magic mushrooms is back open — and seemingly has been for months — after being shut down by police last year.

The persistence of the Mushroom Cabinet, and other stores like it in cities including Ottawa, Toronto and Winnipeg, mirrors what happened with cannabis dispensaries in the years leading up to that drug's legalization, and could provide a hint at what's to come, says University of Toronto drug policy expert Akwasi Owusu-Bempah. 

"These acts of civil disobedience force governments to act, either to decide to enforce or to move more quickly with respect to what they're going to do around regulation," said Owusu-Bempah, a sociologist working on psilocybin research with the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) Canada, who is also a consultant to mushroom firm Red Light Holland. 

"I think we'll see more stores," he said, with the caveat that he doesn't expect the same kind of boom that happened with cannabis dispensaries before they were made legal. "There's a greater demand for cannabis than there is for psychedelics."

The Mushroom Cabinet, on Main Street East, a few blocks east of Kenilworth Avenue, opened in December and was shut down by police within days. Psilocybin mushrooms, also known as magic mushrooms, are illegal under the Controlled Drugs and Substance Act, and police said at the time they had arrested two people.

A press release sent to local media at the time said the owner, John Francis, "believes that access to medicinal use of mushrooms can help people suffering" from mental health issues or addictions. 

People living in the area told CBC Hamilton that the store appeared to open again soon after the bust. CBC Hamilton has requested an interview with Hamilton police about the service's approach to this storefront but it has not yet been scheduled.

Local worker describes business as quiet, good neighbour

A visit to the store, which has a black-and-white graphic of several tall-stemmed mushrooms covering the front facade, showed it was very much open in late May.

A Hamilton Spectator article about the store's launch was prominently displayed in a frame on the counter, alongside a vintage copy of the book Mushrooms of Ontario, while large jars full of product offered six different strains of psilocybin mushrooms.

The store also sells the psychedelic drug in edibles and powder and appears to be operating a mail-order business, promising "responsibly-sourced psilocybin ... delivered safely and discreetly to your door."

The clerk working that day deferred media questions to the store owner. CBC Hamilton tried contacting Francis for this story, but did not hear back. The person who answered the store's phone number Wednesday said, "no comment at this time."

The Mushroom Cabinet's storefront was previously home to a cannabis dispensary. Another cannabis dispensary and a Beer Store are located on the same block.

Clay Mahar, an employee at nearby bike shop Main Cycle, described the business as a good neighbour, noting very little changed about the area's vibe when the location went from selling cannabis to mushrooms.

"They [the cannabis store owners] were good as well," he told CBC Hamilton. "This guy doesn't bother us either and there's not problems in front of the store or anything like that. Just 'good morning,' 'good night,' kind of thing. That's it."

Expert calls psilocybin prohibition 'outdated, unjust, and unscientific'

In Canada, there are three ways a person can use psilocybin legally: participating in a clinical trial, requesting an exemption under Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act or applying to Health Canada's Special Access Program, which require both a recommendation from a doctor and government approval.

In November, Health Canada told CBC it had granted exemptions to 81 patients for psilocybin treatments since August 2020, and 19 to health-care specialists for training purposes. The exemptions are valid for one year.

Owusu-Bempah says many of the successful applicants for special access have been people with cancer who are nearing death. He says the research being done into the drug's medical effects shows it is particularly useful with mental health concerns, such as treatment-resistant depression. He says more research needs to be done, noting work studying these drugs has long been hindered by prohibition.

He sees the emergence of these mushroom stores as a positive form of civil disobedience, calling out drug policy — especially around psychedelics — that he believes is "inappropriate, incorrect and really wrong.

"The idea that you could walk into a bar, or walk into a store, and purchase alcohol but you can't purchase psychedelics flies in the face of what the science tells us. Alcohol is a much more harmful drug than psilocybin, both to the individual and to society.… Enforcing outdated, and unjust, and unscientific drug laws is not what our police should be doing."