Canadian household expenditure on cannabis (for medical and non-medical use) was up 1.1 per cent in the third quarter, following a 1.8 per cent increase in the second quarter, according to Statistics Canada.

The federal agency reported on Wednesday that household expenditure on cannabis has increased for six consecutive quarters, averaging a growth rate of 1.5 per cent.

“Consumption has increased 73 per cent since the second quarter of 2001, when the Canadian government passed legislation legalizing the consumption of cannabis for medical purposes,” said StatsCan.

“In nominal terms, at annual rates, Canadians spent $5.9 billion on cannabis products in the third quarter. Of this, 83.9 per cent or $4.9 billion was purchased illegally for non-medical use. This proportion has fallen from 98.0 per cent in the second quarter of 2014, reflecting increases in cannabis consumption for medical use,” it said.

“An estimated 1.9 per cent of this consumption was from home production for own non-medical use. Spending on cannabis for medical purposes totalled $836 million, representing 14.2 per cent of the total. This includes $88 million of home production of cannabis for own medical use.”

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