BC Survey Finds Overall Cannabis Use Among Youth at 25-Year Low

As cannabis license consultants, Thrive Advisors stays up-to-date on health reports and studies concerning both the economic and social impact of liquor and cannabis use. The McCreary Centre Society has recently released findings of the 2023 BC Adolescent Health Survey (AHS) in the report “Blunt Talk 111, Cannabis use among BC youth aged 12–18” (PDF).

The 2023 survey involved 2,316 classrooms in 59/60 BC school districts for a total of 38,277 survey respondents aged 12-18. According to the report, many youth reported feeling that substance use was declining among young people. Some thought that the COVID-19 pandemic’s influence on socializing was a partial cause, because during the pandemic and its lockdowns, youth were not socializing and attending parties, where they would typically first try cannabis.

Key Findings

Below are several key findings about cannabis use among youth from the 2023 survey:

• In 2023, 22% of BC youth reported ever having used cannabis. This was lower than in all previous survey years since 1998 (1998 =41%, 2003=37%, 2008=30%, 2013=26%, 2018=25%, 2023=22%)
• 2023 was the first year that females were more likely to have tried cannabis than males
• Youth were less likely to have tried cannabis than alcohol
• Compared to 5 years ago, youth who used cannabis were less likely to have smoked it (73% vs. 88%) and more likely to have eaten it (23% vs. 16%)
• 10% of youth reported purchasing cannabis at a cannabis store and 3% made a purchase online
• 12% of youth reported driving a vehicle after using cannabis – the lowest percentage reported in 15 years
• The longer youth had used cannabis, the more likely they were to have used it recently and regularly, and the more likely they were to have reported needing help for their use. 30% of youth who were 12 or younger when they first used cannabis needed help in the past year, compared to 23% of those who were 13 or 14 when they first tried it

About Thrive Liquor & Cannabis Advisors

Thrive Advisors is a leading retail cannabis licensing consultant that works with licensed cannabis stores in BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario. Our consultants provide cannabis license application support and retail strategy for start-ups and existing businesses.