CBD 2023, according to a ministerial decree it will be a narcotic substance

From September 22, 2023, in Italy, stores that offer light cannabis will no longer be able to sell products for oral use based on CBD obtained from cannabis extracts. With a decree by the Minister of Health Orazio Schillaci, which unblocks an identical act by his predecessor Roberto Speranza frozen in 2020, CBD becomes a narcotic substance and can only be sold in pharmacies.

BUT WHAT IS CBD REALLY?

Cannabidiol or CBD is a cannabinoid present in cannabis sativa, as well as THC, the main psychotropic component of cannabis. Despite having the same chemical composition, CBD is not psychoactive; for this reason in recent years in many countries it has been decided to use it in the preparation of a wide range of products. In many cases, CBD oil is used to support the body in cases of pain, anxiety, stress and sleep disorders. To date, it is one of the main ingredients in treatments based on therapeutic cannabis.

According to WHO, CBD is not dangerous for health. In 2017, the UN specialized institute for health did not include it in the list of controlled substances, that is, those for which there is a risk of developing addiction or damage to health due to its use. The European Court of Justice also underlined the non-dangerousness of cannabidiol in 2020, with a ruling that excluded CBD-based products from the list of those to be considered as narcotics.

The decision taken recently prompted a prompt response from Federcanapa, which brings together the industrial production chain, which underlined that "the Ministry of Health has revived an assumed provision on hemp issued three years ago by the then Minister Speranza. So absurd that he decided to suspend it less than a month after its issuance”. The producers then raised another point, which has always accompanied the government's prohibitionist impulses and risks benefiting national production in a system of free circulation of goods.

Sources:

https://temi.camera.it/leg18/post/OCD15_14268/new-recommendations-who-cannabis-accepted-by-the-united-nations-drugs-commission.html

https://www.gazzetta ufficio.it/eli/id/2020/10/29/20A05955/sg (decree 2020)

https://www.farmacista33.it/politica-sanitaria/27451/cannabis-light-cbd-per-uso-orale-in-tabella-stupefacenti-vendita-solo-nelle-farmacie.html#:~:text=With%20a%20minister%20decree,%20to%20be%20sold%20only%20in%20pharmacies .

Cannabis, the government has included CBD among narcotics. But it is not - LifeGate