Italian city of Bologna backs recreational cannabis reform |

Four councilors in the Italian city of Bologna have spoken out in favor of reforming recreational cannabis for their community.

In this central northern city known for its historical infrastructure dating back to medieval times, the aim is to continue the cannabis reform debate at the local level to keep up the political pressure – and figure out the basic logistics. In Bologna, the current proposal is that initial recreational access be through the city’s pharmacies (similar to the Swiss model which will be launched directly across the border this summer).

The current legalization status of Italy

The country is proceeding in a similar way on reforms, but is currently not a copy of any other European country.

High THC “medical cannabis” is manufactured at the Military Pharmaceutical Chemical Plant (in Florence) and is also imported through strictly pharmaceutically defined channels.

Private providers (Aurora) do indeed run the home cannabis facilities, but it is a high security environment.

Home growing isn’t strictly legitimate either, although precedent has essentially decriminalized it for patients who can prove they are sick. That doesn’t yet protect them from police raids, but at least there is a growing awareness that this topic cannot be completely eliminated from the room.

Additionally, hemp and low-THC, aka “cannabis light”, are (formally) legal in the country, currently putting Italy more on par with the UK than, say, Germany in this regard, although there is a growing CBD market in Germany. Providers only have to be prepared for the ever-present danger of criminal charges. There are currently 200 pending criminal cases against CBD entities only. This phenomenon is not observed in Italy, where low-THC products are available in specialized stores and through online sales.

There was a petition to legalize recreational use that was recently smothered by the Constitutional Court, but the reform is unlikely to disappear anywhere at the federal level in Europe now.

Meanwhile, cities like Bologna and before that Milan (from February) are trying to take a more local approach to the issue. And as in this case, in a semi-coordinated effort unprecedented in any European country. The Milan trial in particular received positive mention in Bologna when ministers raised the issue.

It’s spreading.

Why the Italian market is important for European reform

Just like the American states, European countries are now trying to figure out how to venture into the shallow end of the cannabis recreational kiddy pool. Nobody wants to jump in at the deep end. That is also one of the reasons why the Swiss experiment is so important here too. However limited, it shows that a country in Europe can conduct a national cannabis study and the proverbial sky won’t fall.

Again, there are several signs that hemp cultivation is progressing—including for phytoremediation purposes.

Apart from these developments, the country already represents a valuable CBD marketplace for cannabis imports. For this very reason, many Swiss suppliers are currently exploring commercial opportunities in both France and Italy.

Regardless of how much the police, government ministers, and certainly legitimate industry dislike this conversation, home growing cannot continue to be punished with federal criminal charges — especially for those with serious illnesses.

This has been established by precedent in Italy, unlike Germany, and moreover, legislation allowing this has either been passed, will do so or is generally the case in Malta, Portugal and Holland.

On the medical side of the discussion, the only place where THC is currently allowed, Italy, like Germany, has attempted to integrate the plant and its psychoactive cannabinoid into normalized medicinal channels. Thus, the baseline military requirement for the domestically grown EU GMP flower.

The recent suppression of a petition to hold a national referendum here also puts Italy in interesting territory about its neighbors. In Germany there is a professor who has called for a nationwide referendum on the issue of Rec reform (also knowing that the German Basic Law itself would have to be changed to allow such a petition at all). This is nothing more than a cynical move to slow down the entire conversation for as long as possible. In Italy, the Constitutional Court dismissed the first petition for such a mandate, but it’s not likely that setback will deter the growing sector here, let alone allow federal politicians to continue doing much longer in any tangible way.

This interesting city-by-city staggering system between northern Italian cities is another sign that progress isn’t held up here.

After all, as the saying goes, Rome wasn’t built in a day.