Ontario orders the closure of all cannabis stores

As the coronavirus pandemic is spreading in Canada, the government has decided to change its cannabis policy. Now, all the cannabis stores in the country need to close in order to prevent the spread of the disease. This order comes as a surprise as the cannabis sector was already deemed essential and was taking all the necessary measures to keep its workers and customers safe.

In the legal states in the USA, buying cannabis is not a problem even in times of the Corona crisis, the shops selling hemp and cannabis are considered an essential basic supply. Further north, in Canada, on the other hand, cannabis is legal for all adults for the time being. However, all cannabis shops in Ontario must now close their doors.

In the land of the maple leaf, every province has its own rules and in view of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis, authorities often switch to tougher rules to be followed by citizens.

According to the latest reports, up to 14 days will be the time that people could not get cannabis in Ontario. Will cannabis and hemp patients accept it or will there be a complaint?

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Canada’s change in its cannabis policy during the crisis comes as a surprise

At least the production of medical-based products is allowed to continue unchanged. However,  the shops for luxury goods are to close for two weeks.

10 days ago, Ontario had decreed that cannabis would remain available in the shops and that cannabis consumption would be deemed essential. So why this turnaround now? After all, the stores had already reduced working hours and served the customers in a way that no queues were created and people kept the minimum distances between them.

Online trade for hemp and cannabis is also booming at the moment, and the operators have freed up capacity for this. While in Germany, basically everything that has to do with hemp is prohibited and should be prosecuted, Canada is actually a free country, so these reports come as a surprise.

The question is whether cannabis-derived products deliveries will still be allowed

Wine and beer are considered essential, the local liquor shops are open as well as in Germany. However, the cannabis industry, which is now very powerful in Canada, doesn’t agree with the strain put by the authorities on the sector. Consequently, it has filed an emergency petition so that at least the delivery of cannabis products to be possible without any restrictions.

In Ontario, private delivery services are not allowed to deliver hemp to the customer if the client runs a private business, even if this is allowed again in the closest Canadian province.

The option of buying cannabis online would then be the only one currently available for cannabis users and hemp patients in Toronto and the surrounding area. Orders for cannabis-derived products should also be possible by phone.

Special protection kiosks are being discussed in front of the cannabis shops. However, the authorities in Canad are currently thinking similarly to German officials. They do not think about the cannabis industry and sacrifice both businesses and society in their fight to stop the coronavirus pandemic.

A little personal responsibility cannot hurt, especially since the operators of the cannabis shops are already doing everything for hygiene and safety. One can ask how a large supermarket should do better than a small dispensary with a clear range of hemp and cannabis.

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(Featured image by Tim Mossholder from Pexels)

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