Italy’s hemp industry suffers a second major blow as CBD oil is classified as narcotic

The hemp industry in Italy has suffered another blow after the Regional Administrative Court rejected a petition, deeming CBD oil a narcotic.

Article 18 of Italy’s Security Bill which, under emergency conditions, equated the industrial hemp flower, or inflorescences, with marijuana high in THC, has just been forced into effect.

After this harsh crackdown, there was a mild respite in that CBD oil obtained from flowers would be banned. However, those extracted from leaves or stems will still be allowed for sale over the counter.

The Court reversed its decision and now restricts all CBD-based oral formulations, whether they are derived from cannabis leaves or flowers.

Dateline for the CBD oil Ban

• Roberto Speranza, then Health Minister, introduced the initial decree in 2020 listing CBD oral as a drug. However, it was immediately suspended, pending input from scientific authorities, the Superior Health Council and Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), and never enforced.
• In August 2023, under the leadership of Minister Orazio Shillaci the decree from 2020 was reinstated. No new opinion had been sought by the health authorities. This action triggered an immediate set of legal challenges.
• In October 2023, the TAR issued a decision blocking the implementation of the order. The TAR cited the absence of scientific evidence to support the claim that CBD was non-psychoactive.
• On June 27, 2024, the Ministry of Health reissued its decree. It is now backed up by the new opinion of the CSS and ISS, stating that CBD taken orally may pose health risks. This could be due to the interaction of THC with it.
• September 11 & October 24, 2024: The TAR again suspended the decree, citing a scientific report by Professor Costantino Ciallella, a former forensic medicine director at La Sapienza University, who concluded that CBD does not cause psychophysical dependence and lacks psychoactive effects.

Court’s U-turn

The TAR ruled on 16 April 2025 that the hemp industry associations Canapa Sativa Italia Giantec S.r.l. Biochimica Galoppa S.r.l. and Orti castello had lost their appeal.

Italy, following the ruling, has banned oral CBD products from being sold as foods or supplements. They are now restricted to medicines only available on prescription, dealing the final blow to a dying industry.

The associations challenged the June 27th 2024 decree and claimed that it was unfair, unscientific, damaging to the economy, as well as lacking scientific validity.

After twice refusing the bill the court accepted the Ministry’s application of precautionary principles, an European legal doctrine which allows for preventive regulations when there is scientific uncertainty about possible health risks.

This decision is based upon the findings of Italy’s National Health Institute ISS and Higher Health Council CSS, which both raised safety concerns and questions regarding regulatory oversight for CBD products derived plant extracts.

Some of these concerns include the possibility for liver toxicity or psychiatric symptoms, THC contamination, discrepancies with product labeling, and the presence of synthetic cannabinoids.

The ruling is not equivalent to the listing of pure CBD products as narcotics, and it does not affect synthetic CBD.

In the face of credible but uncertain risks to the public’s health, the judges concluded that precautionary regulation was justified. They cited the Ministry of Health duty to protect its consumers, even in the absence definitive scientific consensus.

MEDCAN24’s next article will explore these rulings and the impact they have on industry.