The Ministry legalizes the sale of Cannabis Light

The Ministry of Agricultural Policies finally signs off on the sale and sets the limit of THC and the entire sector of Italian light hemp

The limit for the legal sale of light cannabis in Italy is set at 0.2%. Finally, after months of tug-of-war between institutions, associations, growers and online sites, the guidelines for the sale of light marijuana inflorescences are being defined more clearly.

Circular from the Ministry of Agricultural Policies finally takes into consideration inflorescences from certified seeds

"although not expressly mentioned by law no. 242 of 2016 among the purposes of cultivation or among its possible uses, they fall within the scope of article 2, paragraph 2, letter g), entitled, Lawfulness of cultivation, i.e. within the scope of cultivations intended for floriculture, provided that such products derive from one of the permitted varieties, registered in the Common Catalogue of varieties of agricultural plant species, whose overall THC content of the cultivation does not exceed the levels established by the legislation, and provided that the product does not contain substances declared harmful to health by the competent institutions."

The circular vetoes the maximum limit of TCH present in the inflorescence. The limit is set at 0.2% in all those products that directly or indirectly come from the industrial development and cultivation of cannabis. The limit of 0.6% remains constrained as tolerable during cultivation , which if exceeded leads to the seizure of all the cultivation affected by exceeding the imposed limit.

Circular of 22 May 2018 - Clarifications on the application of Law 2 December 2016, n. 242.

Starting from the 2017/2018 cultivation campaign, the hemp (C annabis sativa L. ) cultivation sector has been regulated by Law no. 242 of 2 December 2016, containing provisions for the promotion of the cultivation and agro-industrial supply chain of hemp, which came into force on 14 January 2017.

The varieties of hemp that Law No. 242 of 2016 allows to be grown are those registered in the Common Catalogue of Varieties of Agricultural Plant Species, pursuant to Article 17 of Council Directive 2002/53/EC of 13 June 2002, which do not fall within the scope of the consolidated text of the laws on the regulation of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of the related states of drug addiction, pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 309 of 9 October 1990.
Pursuant to Article 2, paragraph 1, of Law no. 242 of 2016, entitled Lawfulness of Cultivation , the cultivation of these varieties is permitted without the need for authorization, which is instead required for the cultivation of hemp with a high content of Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and Delta-8-trans-tetrahydrocannabinol, hereinafter THC, for the uses permitted by law.

The cited law concerns:
a) the regulation of cultivation and processing;
b) the promotion of the use and final consumption of semi-finished hemp products originating from primarily local supply chains;
c) the development of integrated territorial supply chains that valorise research results and pursue local integration and real economic and environmental sustainability;
d) the production of food, cosmetics, biodegradable raw materials and innovative semi-finished products for industries in various sectors;
e) the implementation of bioengineering works, land remediation, teaching and research activities.

As for the possible uses of the product resulting from cultivation, article 2, paragraph 2, of law no. 242 of 2016 specifies that the following can be obtained from hemp:
a) foods and cosmetics produced exclusively in compliance with the regulations of the respective sectors;
b) semi-finished products, such as fibre, shives, powders, wood chips, oils or fuels, for supplies to industries and craft activities in various sectors, including the energy sector;
c) material intended for green manure practice;
d) organic material intended for bioengineering work or products useful for green building;
e) material intended for phytoremediation for the remediation of contaminated sites;
f) crops dedicated to educational and demonstration activities as well as research by public or private institutes;
g) crops intended for floriculture
The grower is obliged to keep the labels of the purchased seed for a period of not less than twelve months as well as the purchase invoices of the seed for the period established by the legislation in force, as established in article 3, entitled Obligations of the grower .

The THC content of cultivated varieties must not exceed the total limit of 0.2 percent, in weight-to-weight ratio according to the official method, for the purposes of entitlement to aid under the support schemes provided for by the agricultural policy, in accordance with the provisions of European legislation and, in particular, by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No. 639/2014 supplementing Regulation (EU) No. 1307/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing rules for direct payments to farmers under support schemes provided for by the common agricultural policy and amending Annex X to that Regulation, as amended by Commission Delegated Regulation No. 2017/1155 of 15 February 2017.
Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products, and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007, in Article 189, concerning imports of hemp, regulates the conditions that must be met in order to import hemp products into the European Union.
The aforementioned Regulation, for the purposes of import, sets the maximum THC content of raw hemp, falling within CN code 5302 10 00, of seeds of hemp varieties intended for sowing falling within CN code ex 1207 99 20, as well as of hemp seeds other than those intended for sowing falling within CN code 1207 99 91, which may be imported only by importers approved by the Member State in such a way as to ensure that they are not intended for sowing, at 0.2%.

For cultivation purposes, the THC limits set out in Article 4, paragraph 5, of Law No. 242 of 2016, entitled Controls and sanctions, must be respected. If, as a result of the control, the overall THC content of the crop is found to be greater than 0.2 percent and within the limit of 0.6 percent, no liability is placed on the farmer who has complied with the requirements of Law No. 242 of 2016.
It is also specified that, if it is found that the THC content is higher than the limit of 0.6 percent, the judicial authority can order the seizure or destruction of the hemp crops.
With specific regard to crops intended for floriculture, it is specified that:

1. The reproduction of hemp plants is permitted exclusively from certified seed.
2. The reproduction by asexual means of material intended for the production and subsequent marketing of products from it is not contemplated.
3. According to the provisions of article 3 of law no. 242 of 2016, the nurseryman must keep the certified seed tag and the relative purchase documentation for a period of no less than 12 months and, in any case, for the entire duration of the seed's permanence at the nursery company.
4. The sale of plants for ornamental purposes is permitted without authorization.
5. The nursery activity is also regulated by articles 19 and 20 of the legislative decree of 19 August 2005, n. 214, in implementation of Directive 2000/29/EC concerning protective measures against the introduction and spread within the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products.
6. Commercial imports of hemp plants from other countries do not fall within the scope of Law No. 242 of 2016 and, in any case, must comply with the European Union and national legislation in force in

With specific regard to hemp inflorescences, it should be noted that these, although not expressly mentioned by law no. 242 of 2016 either among the purposes of cultivation or among its possible uses, fall within the scope of article 2, paragraph 2, letter g) , entitled, Lawfulness of cultivation, i.e. within the scope of cultivations intended for floriculture, provided that such products derive from one of the permitted varieties, registered in the Common Catalogue of varieties of agricultural plant species, whose overall THC content of the cultivation does not exceed the levels established by the legislation, and provided that the product does not contain substances declared harmful to health by the competent institutions.
For the correct application of Law No. 242 of 2016 and the development of hemp cultivation in Italy, the widest possible dissemination of this circular is recommended.