Alberta dispensary becomes first to sell cannabis at Edmonton comedy festival

Comedy fans attending the Great Outdoors Comedy Festival from July 12 to 14 will have the option of taking part in what’s believed to be an Alberta first.

Plantlife Cannabis, Alberta’s largest independent cannabis dispensary, will be the first to sell products at the star-studded festival, which showcases some of the biggest names in comedy at Kinsmen Park.

Ian Scott, vice president of operations for Plantlife Cannabis, told 630 CHED’s This Morning with Stacey Brotzel that staff will sell products out of a sea container set up in an area of the park called “The Garden by Plantlife.”

The Garden will feature products from brands like Papa’s Herb and Boxhot as well as Alberta brans like Zèle, Next Friday, Leisure Club and Token Naturals.

The setup is similar to a beer garden, Scott said.

“You can come up and see us and purchase pre-rolls, edibles, beverages. We take cash or card, and we have a little consumption area directly beside us as well,” he said.

The use of cannabis products has increased and become socially acceptable since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first decriminalized the substance in October 2018, allowing Canadians to purchase and possess up to 30 grams of cannabis in public.

According to Statistics Canada, more than one-third of adults aged 18 to 24 years and 25 to 44 years reported using cannabis in 2023, compared with 15.5 per cent of adults aged 45 years and older.

Historical data from October 2019 shows roughly 17 per cent of Canadians aged 15 and older reported using cannabis in the three previous months, unchanged from 2018 before legalization.

Scott said that social acceptance is helping to reduce cannabis stigma.

He also credits recent red tape reduction measures introduced by the provincial government that allow cannabis producers to sell directly to consumers on-site and online.

“As the days go by, as the years progressed, more and more it is a fabric of Canada and it’ll be more accepted,” he said.

“You’ll see it more and more at festivals and kind of out from closed doors a little bit more.”

He believes “without question” that it won’t be long before more festivals jump on board and view cannabis through the same lens as alcohol.

“It’s a privilege to be in this industry. I’ve been here for six years and I’m excited to see what five years, 10 years down the road looks like,” he said.

“We are still in the infancy stages. That’s number one. We are in infancy stages, but every day is getting more exciting and I’m excited to be a part of it.”

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