The company will use software from Los Angeles-based TruTrace, to track medical cannabis the way it does other legal drugs, in advance of a rollout to direct cannabis sales at over 1,300 stores across the country. The project will launch next month and is expected to be fully operational by the end of the year. (Globe and Mail)
Talking point: This move puts Shoppers even further ahead of other pharmacies when it comes to medical cannabis. It is currently the only pharmacy authorized to sell, although London Drugs and Rexall are training staff on the product. TruTrace is hoping a successful pilot will allow it to build similar partnerships with Walgreens and CVS in the U.S., as a growing number of states legalize medical cannabis. Standardization and origin tracking could also reassure doctors, some of whom have been reluctant to prescribe cannabis, despite its legalization in 2018, over concerns about what precisely is in the product.