Magic mushroom shop in Sudbury asked to close its doors after 2 days

A store in Sudbury that sells 'magic mushrooms' which contain the psychedelic compound, psilocybin, was open for just over two days before police visited Tuesday and asked an employee to close up shop.

"To me it sounded like the police were fairly certain that they were going to charge me. However it's still up in the air," the employee told CBC News.

CBC is withholding the employee's name due to concerns for his family.

In an email to CBC News, a spokesperson for the Greater Sudbury Police service confirmed officers were at the Shroomyz store in downtown Sudbury Tuesday morning and spoke with an employee there. 

"The store is closed and officers will continue to monitor the store to ensure compliance," the email said.

Under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, the sale, possession and production of magic mushrooms containing psilocybin are illegal unless authorized by Health Canada.

Health Canada can authorize magic mushroom use in a few instances, with the support of a regulated health care professional, for clinical trials, through a special access program and, in rare cases, under individual exemptions if prescribed by a doctor.

Hallucinations and 'bad trips'

Magic mushrooms can cause hallucinations and can affect people by distorting their sense of reality, mixing up their senses and altering their sense of time.

Health Canada says the risks related to magic mushroom use include what's commonly called a "bad trip", which can happen with a high dose.

The agency says bad trips can lead to paranoia, loss of boundaries and a distorted sense of self.

"For individuals predisposed to or with existing psychiatric conditions, there may be an elevated risk of side effects. This association is still being evaluated," Health Canada says on its web page about magic mushrooms.

The employee at the Sudbury Shroomyz location said he wasn't certain whether the store would reopen in the coming days.

"If the open sign is on, then it will be open," he said.

The employee said he got involved in magic mushroom retail as a way to protest current laws banning the substance in most cases.

"I'm willing to do this because magic mushrooms, psilocybin mushrooms, have helped me as a person develop," he said.

"They've helped me see things from a different perspective and definitely stop living in my own head as much."

The employee added that he refuses to sell the mushrooms to minors or to people already under the influence of drugs or alcohol. He added that anyone who plans to use magic mushrooms should consult with a doctor or psychiatrist first.

Shroomyz has several stores across Ontario, including Toronto, Ottawa, Barrie and London.

In a statement to CBC News, the Downtown Sudbury Business Improvement Area (BIA) said it doesn't have the power to regulate what businesses open in the area.

"We are aware of their opening and are monitoring the impact and in discussions with our stakeholders," the statement said.

The Shroomyz employee confirmed with the CBC that the store does not have a business licence and could face municipal bylaw fines.

Roxane Zuck, the CEO of Monarch Recovery Services in Sudbury, said there's a "huge difference" between cannabis stores and stores that sell magic mushrooms.

"The cannabis stores are regulated. They have licences," she said.

"There are safeguards put in place so that, you know, the product that they are selling is going to be what they say they're selling. Just like pharmacies."

Zuck said the drug crisis in Sudbury is "very concerning", although alcohol and opioids are the drugs most commonly used by those addicted to substances.