RE:RE:supreme at SQDC? While the Quebec Cannabis Society (SQDC) has put a brake on the deployment of its branch network because stocks are not at the rendezvous, producers are busy in the hope of convincing it to stock up close to them.
In recent weeks, at least two Ontario-based companies - Supreme Cannabis and Up Cannabis - have entered the Lobbyists Registry to approach the SQDC, La Presse canadienne reported.
In these two cases, the objective is clear: these companies want to do business with the subsidiary of the Socit des alcools du Qubec (SAQ) to fill the shelves of its branches, which have quickly been depleted.
"We are looking for a sales contract (...) to supply our products," says Up Cannabis, a Newstrike subsidiary that is run from Oakville, Ontario, by Jean Richer, which includes dried flowers.
For its part, Supreme Cannabis claims, through its subsidiary 7Acres, to operate a production site of 342,000 square feet in Kincardine whose annual production is expected to reach 50,000 kilos of marijuana.
In the section of her website where she explains how to do business with her, the SQDC also confirmed that it was deploying the "second phase" of its procurement strategy.
"It is clear that the SQDC intends to diversify its sources of supply, which is why we are proceeding with a call for proposals process to find new suppliers with the required Health Canada approvals. and an accreditation from the Autorit des marchs financiers, "said a spokesperson for the SAQ, Mathieu Gaudreault, by email.
According to the registration details of these two companies, which did not return Tuesday the calls and e-mails of The Canadian Press, the steps should be made with the SQDC and the SAQ through meetings, calls and written communications. Both terms expire in the fall of 2019.
The SAQ also did not indicate whether it had had exchanges with these two producers.
On the Health Canada website, Up Cannabis is identified as a licensed grower, processor and seller under the Cannabis Act. The name Supreme Cannabis does not appear on this list, but its subsidiary is licensed by the federal authorities.
Supreme Cannabis has already signed contracts with Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.
Currently, the SQDC has entered into supply agreements with only six companies: Hexo, Canopy Growth, Aurora Cannabis, Aphira and Tilray. Quebec's only producer, Hexo, is its preferred supplier.
Last October, the new President of the Corporation, Jean-Franois Bergeron, announced that there will soon be other tenders in the coming months in order to make room for smaller producers.
The SQDC opened 12 branches on October 17, the first day it was legally possible to consume cannabis for recreation, before reducing its hours of operation because of supply problems. The consumer craze had made the branch shelves, in many cases, quickly empty.
Branches are now closed on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays and it will take a few more months before the 12 branches of the SQDC reopen seven days a week, as they did at the start.
Mr. Bergeron recalled that the initial plan was to operate a network of 50 points of sale at the end of the first year of legalization, but that this plan would be reviewed by the SQDC.