In October 2015, companies engaged in the licensed production
and sale of marijuana welcomed the victory of pro-decriminalization
candidate Justin Trudeau. Exactly what the victory meant for the
heavily regulated industry was unclear but several publicly traded
companies enjoyed an immediate rise in stock prices as the
potential size of the market expanded significantly.
In early 2014,
this blog commented on the increase in market activity ahead of
new medical marijuana regulations coming into force on April 1,
2014 and noted that, at that time, Health Canada estimated that
sales in the industry could reach $1.3 billion by 2024. The significance of the
Liberal victory is that the potential size of the marijuana market
has exponentially increased due to the fact that a recreational
market is now on the horizon. According to Globe and Mail source Martin Landry, that
recreational marijuana market could be worth between $4-billion and
$5-billion per year. That figure is
