You have contacted the ACCC’s FOI team. We respond only to FOI
requests and FOI enquiries to the ACCC under the Freedom of Information
Act 1982. 
 
To report a scam, consumer issue or to make a general enquiry with the
ACCC you’ll need to do so online:  
-[1]report a scam  

* -[2]report a consumer issue 
* -[3]make a general enquiry with the ACCC.  

 
If you need to speak with someone about your consumer issue, general
enquiry or scam report, please contact the ACCC's Infocentre on 1300 302
502. 
 
Spam emails and unwanted phone calls/faxes can be reported to the
Australian Communications and Media Authority: [4]ACMA report spam or
[5]ACMA unwanted calls/faxes
---

IMPORTANT: This email from the Australian Competition and Consumer
Commission (ACCC), and any attachments to it, may contain information that
is confidential and may also be the subject of legal, professional or
other privilege. If you are not the intended recipient, you must not
review, copy, disseminate, disclose to others or take action in reliance
on, any material contained within this email. If you have received this
email in error, please let the ACCC know by reply email to the sender
informing them of the mistake and delete all copies from your computer
system. For the purposes of the Spam Act 2003, this email is authorised by
the ACCC www.accc.gov.au

References

Visible links
1. https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/report-a-scam
2. https://www.accc.gov.au/contact-us/conta...
3. https://www.accc.gov.au/contact-us/conta...
4. https://www.acma.gov.au/stop-getting-spam
5. https://www.acma.gov.au/protect-yourself...

OFFICIAL

 

Dear Zack,

Acknowledgment of request for access under the Freedom of Information Act
1982 (Cth)

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) acknowledges
receipt of your web submission of 18 August 2025 requesting access, under
the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth), to:

 

‘For the period from 1 November 2016 to the present, I request the
following information regarding corporations, businesses, or individuals
involved in the medicinal cannabis industry in Australia:

 

The total number of complaints or reports received concerning potential
breaches of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010.

The total number of investigations commenced.

The total number of matters that resulted in enforcement action or other
compliance outcomes.

 

A de-identified list of all enforcement actions or compliance outcomes,
specifying for each matter:

a. The nature of the alleged conduct (e.g., misleading or deceptive
conduct, unconscionable conduct, anti-competitive exclusive dealing,
third-line forcing, false or misleading representations).

b. The penalty or outcome (e.g., infringement notice issued,
court-enforceable undertaking accepted, institution of legal proceedings,
pecuniary penalty imposed).

 

This request specifically includes complaints, investigations, or actions
taken in relation to business models of concern within the medicinal
cannabis sector, including but not limited to:

 

"Prescription Channelling": Practices that direct or require patients to
have prescriptions filled at a specific pharmacy, potentially limiting
consumer choice and constituting anti-competitive conduct such as
third-line forcing or exclusive dealing.

 

"Closed-Loop" or Vertically Integrated Models: Business structures where
the prescribing entity, clinic, or practitioner has a direct or indirect
financial interest in the supplier or pharmacy, creating potential
conflicts of interest that may lead to misleading conduct or consumer
harm.’

Timeframe for processing your request

The ACCC has 30 days to process your request, beginning 18 August 2025.
This timeframe may be extended by a further 30 days by the ACCC where
consultation with certain third parties is necessary. You will be advised
if we extend the timeframe for third party consultation.

Charges

If the ACCC decides that you should pay a charge to process your request,
we will notify you of the likely cost of processing your request and your
options if you disagree. The statutory timeframe is placed on hold from
when a charges notice is sent to you and resumes at a later time.

We will notify you of any charges in relation to your request as soon as
practicable.

Practical refusal

If we are unable to identify the documents you are seeking, or processing
your request would substantially and unreasonably divert the ACCC’s
resources from its other operations, we will send you a notice of our
intention to refuse your request and your options, including if you
disagree.

Decision

A decision maker will assess the documents (if any) to decide if we can
release them, or if they are exempt from release. We will send you the
decision and notify you of your review rights.

We will only release documents once any applicable processing charge is
paid.

If we cannot locate any documents that are covered by the scope of your
request, or if we refuse to confirm or deny the existence of documents, we
will advise you of this and your review rights.

Publication of documents released under FOI

Material released under FOI may be published on our website unless we
consider it unreasonable to do so.

If you have any questions regarding the above, please contact me on
(02) 6243 1244.

Yours sincerely,

 

Chelsea Mears
FOI Team Leader | Corporate Law Unit | Specialist Advice and Services
Division (SASD)

Australian Competition & Consumer Commission
Ngunnawal Country
23 Marcus Clarke Street, Canberra ACT 2601
GPO Box 3131, Canberra ACT 2601

T 02 6243 1244
Hours Monday - Friday

[1]accc.gov.au

[2]ACCC Logo
The ACCC acknowledges the traditional owners and custodians of Country
throughout Australia and recognises their continuing connection to the
land, sea and community. We pay our respects to them and their cultures;
and to their Elders past, present and future.

 

 

---

IMPORTANT: This email from the Australian Competition and Consumer
Commission (ACCC), and any attachments to it, may contain information that
is confidential and may also be the subject of legal, professional or
other privilege. If you are not the intended recipient, you must not
review, copy, disseminate, disclose to others or take action in reliance
on, any material contained within this email. If you have received this
email in error, please let the ACCC know by reply email to the sender
informing them of the mistake and delete all copies from your computer
system. For the purposes of the Spam Act 2003, this email is authorised by
the ACCC www.accc.gov.au

References

Visible links
1. https://accc.gov.au/
2. https://www.accc.gov.au/