The Higgs government says it has received eight proposals in its bid to find a single private operator for Cannabis NB.
Finance minister Ernie Steeves was impressed by the strong interest in the request for proposals (RFP) process.
National grocery retailer Loblaws and Ontario-based cannabis producer Canopy Growth are among the bigger names submitting bids.
Two New Brunswick organizations – the NB Association of Cannabis Distributors and RSL NB – are also in the mix along with Nova Scotia-based Green Stop Cannabis.
Two Alberta-based cannabis retailers – Fire & Flower and YSS Corp. – and a British Columbia-based retailer – Kiaro Brands – round out the list.
The province says the proposals will be reviewed soon by a third-party through a transparent process.
A single operator could be chosen by this spring with the new private model being rolled out by later this year.
