Village Farms backs Budget 2026 proposal to reduce cannabis excise stamps
The proposed common stamp would reduce the number of stamp types from 13 to six, with a Jan. 1, 2028 start date and no company savings estimate.
Adrian Kessler
Canada proposed a common cannabis excise duty stamp in its Nov. 5 budget to simplify requirements for licensed producers. Village Farms International, Inc. NASDAQVFF welcomed the proposal on Thursday, Nov. 5, saying it would reduce the number of distinct stamps from 13 to six.
The company’s Nov. 6 release gives Jan. 1, 2028 as the intended start date. It describes a common stamp for provinces and territories sharing the same excise duty rate, but provides no dollar estimate of savings for Village Farms.
Village Farms is a large British Columbia-based cannabis producer with Canadian greenhouse operations and an international medical export business. Its Canadian brands include Pure Sunfarms and Fraser Valley Weed Co.
The federal Budget 2026 tax annex identifies its measures as proposals. Village Farms likewise says it looks forward to working with governments as the measure moves from proposal to implementation. Its announcement describes a budget proposal rather than a notice of an enacted stamping change.
Shares closed at US$2.79, down 4.78 per cent, at 4 p.m. EST on Nov. 5 on NASDAQVFF, before the company’s Friday release.
Stamp Savings Remain Unquantified
Village Farms chief executive Michael DeGiglio linked the existing system to supply-chain delays and additional costs. The company’s release does not disclose its annual stamping expense, transition costs or an expected earnings benefit from the proposed change.
“Requiring 13 different stamps for the same product created unnecessary complexity, slowed down our supply chain, and added costs without delivering additional value,” DeGiglio said in the release.
Jurisdictions with Coordinated Cannabis Taxation Agreements outside the initial group would be invited to adopt the common stamp, according to Village Farms. DeGiglio encouraged all provinces and territories to participate so producers and distributors could obtain the full benefits of the reform.
The initial design would still leave six stamp types in use. Its scope is narrower than a single stamp covering every destination, and the company has not assigned a financial value to broader provincial and territorial participation.
The cost issue described in the release is the complexity of handling different stamps for the same product. Village Farms supplies no duty-rate reduction in its account of the measure, while DeGiglio says further discussions on excise reform and a national export strategy remain company priorities.
Canadian Producers Also Pursue Export Growth
The proposal arrives as Canadian cannabis producers report growth across domestic and international markets. Cronos Group Inc. TSECRON NASDAQCRON reported third-quarter net revenue of US$63.5 million in its Nov. 5 results, compared with US$36.3 million a year earlier.
Cronos attributed the increase partly to higher flower sales in Israel and Germany, which it said carry no excise taxes. Higher Canadian flower and extract sales also contributed, while the company linked improved gross profit partly to a greater mix of sales in international markets.
Read more: Cronos Group reports US$63.5M sales as international demand grows
Village Farms’ own exposure extends beyond Canadian stamping rules: its Nov. 6 release describes international medical exports from Canada and an operation in the Netherlands. It says it is one of ten licensed operators in the Dutch regulated cannabis program.
The next implementation date identified in Village Farms’ announcement is Jan. 1, 2028, when the proposed common stamp would begin under the plan it describes. The scope would initially cover jurisdictions sharing the same duty rate, with participation by others subject to their adoption of the common stamp.
