Canada needs a national cannabis export strategy to secure a global advantage, but three structural problems are holding us back.Tijana Martin/The Canadian Press

Rick Savone is senior vice president, global government relations, of Aurora Cannabis.

As a former trade commissioner, ambassador to Brazil, and consul general in China, I spent three decades helping Canadian businesses compete globally. From my vantage point within Canada’s cannabis industry, I see rich opportunities for our country – if we can navigate the pitfalls.

Canada was the first G20 country to legalize and regulate cannabis, building on a medical regulatory system dating back to 2001. That pioneering step gave it a head start and positioned Canadian producers to lead internationally as global demand for medical cannabis accelerates.

In the years between legalization in 2018 and 2024, cannabis has contributed about $76.5-billion to Canada’s gross domestic product (GDP), according to a recent report from the Ontario Cannabis Store and Deloitte. It also showed that the industry supports more than 98,000 jobs.

But that initial lead in the industry is slipping. Outdated barriers are preventing Canadian producers from seizing the full opportunity of medical cannabis exports. Canada needs a national cannabis export strategy to secure a global advantage in a regulated industry the federal government itself helped create.

© The Globe and Mail