Last Week in Cannabis #18
September 28 – October 4, 2026 | Issue #18
Hey friend — welcome back to Last Week in Cannabis. A feel-good story to open with, a meaningful development in Ontario, and a significant procedural delay south of the border that Canadian producers are watching closely. Let's get into it.
1. CANADA — Six Cannabis Companies Made the Globe and Mail's Top-Growing Businesses List
The Globe and Mail's annual Report on Business ranking of Canada's Top Growing Companies was released this week, and six cannabis companies made the cut — spanning retail and production. High Tide led the group for the sixth consecutive year, placing 315th out of 375 companies nationally, with a verified three-year revenue growth rate of 66% and an adjusted EBITDA increase of 161% over the same period. Also on the list: 1CM, a Toronto-area cannabis retailer ranked 117th, making the list for the second straight year. Auxly Cannabis came in at 319th.
Mary Jane's Take: Six cannabis companies on a mainstream national business ranking — alongside some of Canada's most established growth companies in every sector — is worth acknowledging. It would have been unthinkable a decade ago. The cannabis industry still has real challenges, but the businesses that survived the early chaos, found sustainable models, and focused on execution are now being recognized alongside the best businesses in the country. That is progress.
2. CANADA — Ontario's Cannabis Store Is Getting a New CEO and a New Ordering System
The Ontario Cannabis Store announced this week that its CEO, David Lobo, will be leaving in November. At the same time, the OCS introduced a new five-day business-to-business ordering window for Ontario cannabis retailers — a logistical change that gives stores more time to plan their inventory orders and reduces last-minute purchasing pressure.
Mary Jane's Take: Ontario is the largest cannabis market in Canada, so how the OCS functions matters enormously for retailers and consumers alike. The timing of a CEO departure alongside an operational change is worth watching. The five-day ordering window is a practical improvement that retailers have been pushing for — it gives smaller stores more ability to plan rather than scramble. Whether the incoming leadership continues the operational improvements is the question.
3. UNITED STATES — The DEA Rescheduling Process Just Hit Another Delay
We have been following the US cannabis rescheduling hearing since June. This week brought a new wrinkle. DEA Chief Administrative Law Judge Derek Julius issued a stay on September 29th — pausing the entire rescheduling proceeding — to consider whether a new Government Accountability Office report should be admitted into the hearing record.
The GAO report, released September 23rd, found that both the DEA and FDA lack formal written policies defining their roles and procedures for scheduling substances. Three parties opposed to rescheduling — a workplace drug testing association, an anti-impaired driving group, and a physician — asked the judge to add the report to the record. The judge agreed to pause proceedings while the DEA files its response, due October 13th.
Critically, the stay does not affect April's order that already moved state-licensed medical cannabis and FDA-approved cannabis products to Schedule III. That change remains in effect.
Mary Jane's Take: It is important to read this carefully. The GAO report does not say cannabis should stay in Schedule I. It does not evaluate cannabis at all — it examines the procedures the DEA and FDA use when making scheduling decisions and found they lack formal written policies. Opponents of rescheduling are using it as a procedural lever to delay the process. Whether the judge decides the report warrants being added to the record — and whether that meaningfully changes anything — remains to be seen. October 13th is the next date to watch. In the meantime, medical cannabis rescheduling is already done. This delay affects only the broader, adult-use portion of the rescheduling proposal.
4. GLOBAL — New York's Legal Cannabis Market Just Crossed $4 Billion in Total Sales
New York State officials announced this week that recreational cannabis dispensaries have now sold more than $4 billion worth of legal cannabis products since sales began. The state's market has grown significantly as the number of licensed dispensaries has expanded — though New York's rollout has been slower and more contested than most other US states.
Mary Jane's Take: Four billion dollars is a meaningful milestone for a market that had one of the most chaotic licensing processes in the country. New York's legal rollout was plagued by legal challenges, equity program disputes, and years of unlicensed shops operating openly on city streets. The fact that it has reached $4 billion despite all of that says something about the underlying demand. The illicit market in New York is still significant, but legal sales are growing, and that momentum matters.
That's your week — two from Canada, one from the United States, one from New York specifically. See you next Monday.
— Mary Jane
