Manitoba

Dos and don'ts of cannabis: Manitoba government launches public education campaign

The Manitoba government wants to remind you what you can and can't do with cannabis, wherever you are.

Facts on province's cannabis laws will be advertised in public spaces

Elizabeth Stephenson, chief administrative officer of the Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority of Manitoba, speaks at a press conference announcing the first phase of a public education campaign surrounding the legalization of recreational cannabis. (Travis Golby/CBC)

The Manitoba government wants to remind you what you can and can't do with cannabis, wherever you are.  

Facts on consumption, legal age and possession amounts will be relayed on digital and social media, as well as billboards, transit and poster ads, provincial officials said on Tuesday.

The public education campaign is spearheaded by the Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority of Manitoba, the newly rebranded moniker for the Crown agency regulating cannabis sales, in addition to its current responsibilities overseeing liquor and gambling. 

The Can and Can't of Cannabis campaign will feature statements about Manitoba's cannabis laws, including:

  • You can't smoke or vape cannabis in public in Manitoba.
  • You must be 19 or older to buy or consume cannabis in Manitoba.
  • You can only buy legal cannabis from licensed retailers.
  • You can't grow cannabis at home in Manitoba.
  • You can carry up to 30 grams of cannabis in public in Manitoba.

The campaign will target people 19 and older, and will run in English and French. 

It is the first phase of LGCA's bid to inform Manitobans about the pending legality of the recreational drug. A second phase expected to launch in mid-October, once recreational cannabis becomes legal, will outline how Manitobans can consume the drug safely. 

The campaign was driven by an anonymous phone survey last year by the Liquor and Gaming Authority of Manitoba, which found the public would benefit from information on the legal rules.