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FINALIST

Filippo Taddei

The entry into force of law number 242 of 2 December 2016 marks a historic fact for Italy. The purpose of the law is to promote the Italian hemp production chain and regulate the market. What makes the cultivation of hemp illegal is not the plant itself, but one of the psychoactive principles it contains, tetrahydrocannabinol. Through genetic manipulation, seed banks have succeeded in removing this active ingredient, creating the so-called “Cannabis Light”. Since the entry into force of this new law, almost 1000 light hemp shops have been opened, over 800 new agricultural VAT numbers specialized in hemp and about 1500 companies in the production chain for its transformation and distribution have been registered. The cultivated area has increased tenfold, going from 400 hectares in 2013 to almost 4 thousand in 2018. Ten thousand employees have been calculated in the entire sector and by the estimates of the National Consortium for the protection of industrial hemp, the turnover in Italy should amount to around 150 million euros. Photo: Alessandro, hemp farmer. Bologna, 8 October 2019.

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FINALISTS