Three weeks following the first anniversary of legalization on November 8, 2019, the top cannabis people, brands, organizations and products of 2019 were recognized at the sixth annual Canadian Cannabis Awards (CCA).   Presented by Lift & Co., a total of 32 awards were announced in both consumers’ choice and judged categories at a black-tie gala at the Fairmont Royal York in downtown Toronto, hosted by Big Brother Canada winner and cannabis ambassador Sarah Hanlon.   “The CCAs are the gold-standard for excellence in the industry, and provide award-winners a vital point of differentiation for their investors, partners and consumers going into the next highly competitive, highly regulated, year in Canadian cannabis,” said Matei Olaru, CEO of Lift & Co. “I’m proud of the trusted platform Lift & Co. provides to elevate and help celebrate Canadian cannabis brands that are building the future of cannabis in Canada—the CCAs are one way we underscore our commitment to providing leading information to the industry each year.”   As the first CCAs edition to recognize a full year of legal recreational cannabis sales, consumers chose the top cannabis flower and oil products of the year with a record-setting 31,000+ votes. Consumers voted between August 23 and October 25 by sharing a product review and/or purchase receipt on Lift.co.   Select top products of the year included:  

• Rossignol by Organigram for Top High THC Bottled Oil,
• Argyle Softgels by Tweed for Top Cannabis Capsules,
• Jean Guy by Good Supply for Top Sativa Dominant Preroll,
• Tangerine Dream by San Rafael ’71 for Top Sativa Flower and,
• Ruxton (Sour OG) by Broken Coast Cannabis for Top Hybrid Flower.

  The top people, organizations and brands were determined by expert judging panels following a nationwide nomination process that took place between August 23 and September 20.   Highlights of winners in the industry-insider-judged categories include:  

• Retailer Superette, which took home awards in the inaugural Top Retail Store—Single Location and Top Budtender categories, as well as Startup of the Year and Co-founder and CEO Mimi Lam named as this year’s Womxn in Weed—Trailblazer,
• Solei Renew CBN Oil won for Innovation of the Year for their proprietary THC-to-CBN conversion technique that helped launch the first CBN oil on the Canadian market,
• Tweed x TerraCycle won the Top Non-Profit/Charity/Community Initiative for the development of the first national recycling program in the Canadian cannabis industry, and
• 7ACRES resonated with the judging panel with their #RespectThePlant campaign to secure the Brand of the Year award. This is the second year in a row The Supreme Cannabis Company won this award.

  These are the brands, people and products to watch in 2020.   As the industry gathered to celebrate 2019 and look ahead to another year of growth and maturation, Employer of the Year winner TREC Brands—a Toronto cannabis brand house with a commitment to donate 10% of their profits to the community—launched the 10% for Good initiative at the CCAs and called on the industry in attendance to join them to build a positive legacy by focusing on the broader community. Attendees at the event, and now the public, can give to a choice of four Canadian charities as part of the campaign—Dress for Success Toronto, HXOUSE, Evergreen, and Cannabis Amnesty. Donations are open here until the end of the year.