When it comes to alcohol, most of us have a general understanding of what is and is not acceptable.

But as the one year anniversary of cannabis legalization in Canada approaches, there’s still a lot of confusion. As a responsible user, you’ve probably found yourself asking questions like “is there a legal limit for cannabis?” “How is it tested for?” “If I smoke cannabis today, will I test positive tomorrow if I’m pulled over?”.

On June 14th, 2019, Health Canada announced that it had finalized its regulations for the production and sale of cannabis edibles in Canada.

In accordance with amendments by the federal government to the Cannabis Act, the new rules will come into effect on October 17th of this year, and will include the sale of edibles, extracts and topicals.

With the rash of media stories over the last few weeks involving e-cigarette users being hospitalized with severe respiratory illnesses, it’s safe to say that both the vaping and cannabis industries are, understandably, on edge.

And with a sixth person confirmed dead from a vaping-related condition earlier this week, the situation is only getting worse. A number of influential organizations have weighed in, new emergency laws have been passed in certain jurisdictions, and the situation has gone from bad to bordering on hysteria.

In July of this year, New York lawmakers voted on a major piece of legislation to further decriminalize marijuana across the state. The bill was the result of a series of debates in Albany surrounding the full legalization of recreational cannabis. The legalization initiative, put forth by State Senator Liz Krueger and Assembly Majority Leader Crystal People-Stokes, ultimately fell through after both sides failed to reach an agreement on a number of key issues. However, despite the apparent failure, decriminalization was reached as a compromise.

With the one year anniversary of legal cannabis in Canada on the horizon, it’s become very apparent that, rather than dwindling and disappearing like many experts predicted, the black market is still going strong. The fact that illegal sales have continued – and thrived! – could potentially dissuade lawmakers in other jurisdictions from adopting similar legislation. This poses a major problem for cannabis advocates.

Between last year’s nationwide legalization in Canada, and record numbers of state legalization efforts in the US, it’s safe to say that, after DECADES of prohibition, things are finally starting to look up for cannabis users – at least, if you’re in North America. But the reality is that, while the trend in our little corner of the world is undoubtably positive, there are still plenty of countries where cannabis is not only illegal, but with drug policies so bizarre and draconian that it almost beggars belief.