Half of cannabis stores closed in New Brunswick

Ten of New Brunswick's 20 cannabis stores were closed Monday as the province grappled with marijuana shortages, not eventhree weeks after the product was made legal in Canada.

Cannabis NB, the Crown corporation in charge of selling cannabis, said it has only received a small fraction of themarijuana it ordered from producers.

"Wehad made an initial order of enough products to last us a few weeks, but we only received about 20 per cent of that," said spokesperson Marie-Andre Bolduc.

• Campbellton's cannabis outlet closed until stock replenished
• Cannabis NB prices are higher than illegal market prices

"We're just playing a bit of catchup."

Bolducsaid producers across the country were facing challenges to meet with Health Canada requirements in terms of packaging and other regulations, slowing down production.

In Quebec, for instance, province-run stores had to close three days a week to deal with shortages.

New Brunswick's storeclosures were expected to last from a few hours to a few days.

The online site also listed several products as out of stock, including pre-rolled joints, oils and some varieties of the dried product.

"We're receiving shipments today, tomorrow and this week," saidBolduc. "We'll be able to open up as soon as we have a variety of products available.

"This is not an ideal situation. However, the store closures are temporary. This is a brand new industry."

The locations closed as of Monday were:

• Fredericton, WoodsideLane.
• Fredericton, BrooksideDrive.
• Moncton, Wyse Street.
• Moncton, Main Street.
• Saint John, LansdowneAvenue.
• Oromocto.
• Bathurst.
• Miramichi.
• Campbellton.
• Edmundston.