Majority of Canadians Want Carney Government to Catch Up on Cannabis Policy

[PRESS RELEASE] – TORONTO, Oct. 29, 2025 – Organigram Global Inc., Canada’s largest cannabis company by market share, released new national polling figures, conducted on its behalf by Abacus Data, showing that a clear majority of Canadians want Ottawa to modernize its approach to the legal cannabis sector.

Nearly six in 10 Canadians (59%) believe the federal government should do more to support jobs and innovation in the sector, while an equal number (59%) see the legal cannabis industry as an important part of the Canadian economy.

“Canadians are ready for the legal cannabis sector to become a pillar of our economic growth strategy,” Organigram Global CEO Beena Goldenberg said. “There’s a clear public mandate for government to modernize how cannabis is treated. Not just as a regulated product, but as a key Canadian industry with room to innovate in areas like beverages, edibles and wellness.”

Pollsters also found that Canadians want Ottawa to apply a stronger economic lens to cannabis policy, one that recognizes the sector’s role in job creation, innovation and growth.

When asked which areas should be prioritized, respondents point to four key priorities:

• Involving economic departments in cannabis decision-making alongside Health Canada
• Taking stronger action against the illicit market
• Reducing excise taxes for legal producers
• Supporting growth in new product categories such as beverages, edibles and wellness items, signaling comfort with innovation in emerging, non-inhalable formats

The overall findings demonstrate that Canadians have moved beyond the debate over legalization and now view the legal industry as a legitimate part of the country’s economic and innovation landscape. One in three Canadians (35%) also reported having used cannabis in the past six months, further demonstrating that cannabis has become more mainstream and socially normalized.

“Canadians are connecting the dots between economic resilience and smart domestic policy,” Abacus Data CEO David Coletto said. “At a time of growing global uncertainty and rising protectionism, Canadians are taking a pragmatic view that growing the legal cannabis sector is one of the ways to strengthen Canada’s economy, create high-value jobs and build greater industrial independence at home.”

This poll builds on Organigram’s Economic Impact Report with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce’s Business Data Lab, which found that, in 2024, the legal cannabis sector contributed $16 billion to direct GDP, $29 billion in economic output, and over 227,000 jobs¹ – more than forestry, breweries or aquaculture. ^{2, 3}

Methodology

This survey was conducted online by Abacus Data with 2,000 Canadian adults aged 18 and older from June 25 to July 2, 2025. Respondents were randomly invited from partner panels based on the Lucid exchange platform, with data weighted according to the latest census figures for age, gender and region to ensure a representative national sample. A probability sample of this size would have a margin of error of ±2.19 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. Totals may not sum to 100 due to rounding.