Hemp and CBD in Italy: where does the sector stand today?

The legal standoff between the Italian government and the hemp industry took a new turn last December.

On December 15, 2025, the Italian Council of State has granted an appeal filed by several professional associations, suspending the previous decision which threatened the entire CBD and industrial hemp in the country.

Although temporary, this decision restores balance to a conflict that has been escalating since’the coming to power of Giorgia Meloni's government.

A suspension with major consequences for the CBD market

At the heart of the dispute is a controversial amendment introduced as part of the National Security Act of June 2024, which reclassified oral preparations containing cannabidiol (CBD) naturally occurring substances, such as the drugs listed in Section B of the Italian drug schedules. This category includes substances such as benzodiazepines and (Delta-9)-THC, which effectively restricts the sale of CBD to pharmacies and prescription-only channels.

By making the’Order No. 4506/2025, the Council of State suspended a previous decision by the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio which had endorsed this approach. The judges opted for caution, postponing the full hearing of the case until May 7, 2026. For industry professionals, this decision offers a temporary reprieve after months of tightening regulations.

An economic sector under pressure

L’hemp industry in Italy is far from insignificant. According to industry estimates, it generates approximately €500 million in annual revenue and supports more than 15,000 jobs, in the fields of agriculture, cosmetics, dietary supplements, floriculture, and herbal medicine. Limiting the use of hemp to fibers and seeds, as the government attempted to do, would have disrupted the entire value chains established since the adoption of the 2016 Hemp Act.

This legislation, which has led to the rise of so-called «Cannabis Light» products with low levels of THC, ... triggered rapid expansion and the opening of hundreds of specialty stores across the country. Since 2022, however, a series of decrees has gradually restricted the scope of legal operations, sparking a wave of legal challenges from farmers, processors, and retailers.

For Giacomo Bulleri, a lawyer representing several hemp associations, the legal issue is clear. The contested measures, he explains, «excluded the use of industrial hemp flowers and leaves, limiting [their production and trade] to seeds and fibers. And the decree on CBD … classified oral preparations containing natural CBD as narcotics.».

The petitioners are advocating for two principles: the legal use of the entire plant Cannabis sativa L. derived from certified low-THC strains, and official recognition that the CBD The extract is, of course, neither a narcotic nor a substance reserved exclusively for medical use. Bulleri argues that this interpretation is consistent with international conventions and the position of the’United Nations International Narcotics Control Board, as well as existing European case law.

Europe is watching closely

Beyond Italy, the case has drawn the full attention of Brussels. Two other decisions are currently pending and could prove decisive. The Italian Constitutional Court must rule on the legality of Section 18 of the Security Decree, which bans hemp flowers and derivatives. At the same time, the The case has been referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in order to assess whether Italian regulations comply with European law regarding the free movement of goods.

These procedures echo landmark European decisions, including the Kanavape case, in which The CJEU ruled : «It should be considered that, given the current state of scientific knowledge […] CBD does not contain any psychoactive substances, and it would be contrary to the objective and general spirit of the 1961 Single Convention to include it in the definition of «narcotic drugs».».

For Italian hemp growers’ associations, the suspension ordered by the Council of State is not a victory, but a strategic pause in a long legal battle. It nevertheless sends a strong signal at a time when the European framework governing the CBD remains fragmented and disputed.

As decisions are set to be made in Rome and Luxembourg, the «Italian case» could well serve as a model for other EU countries facing similar tensions between national drug policies and the principles of European Single Market. Whether this will lead to clearer regulations or further conflict remains to be seen, but the stakes now extend far beyond Italy’s borders.