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There is no doubt that legal cannabis and the surrounding market has been quite a paradigm shift throughout world markets, but legal recreational marijuana in Canada will now help to define a new era of the industry. Although individual states throughout the U.S. have been considered to be the center of the legal cannabis market, Canada has completely flipped that notion on its head with legal cannabis entering the market on Wednesday, October 17th. This Wednesday, the manufacture, distribution, possession, and use of cannabis throughout the entirety of Canada will become legal for adult use.

The effect of this has already been felt throughout Canada’s southern neighbor where various Canadian cannabis stocks have gone public on U.S. exchanges. In addition, several companies have been working to export product to the U.S. for medical research as well. In the U.S., the issue remains that cannabis from a federal point of view is still very much illegal. There is no doubt that this needs to change and has been in the process of being reworked, but the news of Canada shows that we are far, far behind. Many U.S. cannabis companies have complained that they have been losing their fair market share to these Canadian companies because they cannot legally be listed on domestic exchanges.

As the market hits the ground running, recreational sales have been said to hit as much as $6.5 billion in the first two years or so. With the government collecting around 10% per gram of cannabis sold, the new legal market will help to illustrate just how lucrative cannabis can be on a large legal scale.

The hopes, however, are high that this will begin to create a domino effect throughout the example of Canada will be felt throughout the world. The U.S. currently lists cannabis as a schedule I narcotic which puts it on the same level as heroin and methamphetamine. This is a large issue and one that has been attempted to be worked out for many years but with no resolve. The government has simply refused to acknowledge the potential for medical treatment as well as the little harm that cannabis truly causes alone and in comparison to these other drugs.

One of the main issues with this, however, has been the amount of research that can be done. Since the substance is still federally illegal, it is extremely difficult to research the plant domestically. Once cannabis is legal in Canada, scientists will be able to have an easy time conducting clinical trials to see how cannabis affects various aspects of medical conditions and the body in general. The hopes are that this research will be shot around the world to give the public a better understanding of the effects of cannabis.

For now, Canada remains the stronghold in the cannabis market and the one country that has chosen to go forth into such uncharted waters. With the hopes of success on the horizon, it seems as though Canada will continue to set an example for the rest of the world when it comes to cannabis legislation.