Health Canada warns City of Vancouver over licensing mushroom dispensary

published on April 11, 2024 by Mike Howell in Business in Vancouver

Health Canada has sent a letter to Vancouver city manager Paul Mochrie over concerns that two Green Party councillors overturned a ruling of the city’s chief licence inspector to suspend the business licence of a magic mushroom dispensary.

The March 15 letter obtained by Glacier Media is authored by a Health Canada staff member on behalf of acting director general Carol Anne Chenard of the Controlled Substances and Opioid Response Directorate.

“It is important that psilocybin mushrooms are controlled under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act [CDSA],” the letter says.

“Storefronts selling psilocybin to the general public are not authorized to do so under the CDSA and its regulations. Therefore, such storefronts may be subject to law enforcement action.”

The letter was in response to a 2-1 decision March 5 by council’s business licence review panel that overturned a recommendation of Sarah Hicks — the city’s chief licence inspector — and city lawyer Robert LeBlanc…