As a cannabis writer who tries to keep up with the global cannabis industry, I was surprised to come across a hemp shop in Milan’s busy tourist hub during my travels. I was aware of these CBD product shops, but a recent court ruling ruled that these stores were illegal. If you’re traveling through this Southern European country, here’s what you need to know about buying and consuming CBD products in Italy.
CBD in Milan
As I was walking around Milan’s crowded metropolitan center, I walked by a store called Dr. Green Weed. They had cannabis flower buds and clones prominently displayed in the front, so I just had to go in to buy some whole hemp flower buds. I had a nice chat with the guy behind the counter about Italy’s cannabis scene and their selection of products.
You can find hemp flower buds such as Cannatonic and some Dr. Green Weed exclusives. They also had CBD crystal isolates, edibles, and topicals. I bought a gram of Amnesia Haze, which the guy kindly rolled into a spliff and gave me papers for the other half a gram. He told me to hold on to the receipt just in case I have a run-in with the police. Keep in mind, smoking hemp in public is illegal.
Cannabis Light
While the shopkeeper was fairly open about his cannabis use, these high-CBD and low-THC products are only intended to be sold as a “collector’s item” in Italy. Marking the product for consumption could get shops in even more trouble. In December 2016, an Italian law regulated the nation’s hemp industry to resuscitate a faltering agricultural economy. Hemp can be used in a myriad of ways from clothing, biofuel, building materials, food, and more.
The law, however, didn’t write any clear language on the regulation of whole hemp flower buds and its derivatives. This loophole in the law was quickly taken advantage of by hemp producers and stores selling “cannabis light” products with less than 0.5 percent THC, to comply with Italian law. These products are not meant for human consumption, just collection.
Cannabis light does not get you high, but instead, provides relaxing effects that can give you a mellow buzz. I got to enjoy my pre-roll of Amnesia Haze on the balcony of my Airbnb and felt reinvigorated to explore more of Milan. Italy’s conflicting and vague laws around hemp mean that travelers have to be careful when consuming CBD in public (since it’s illegal).
Dr. Green Weed
Italy’s most buzzing cities such as Milan and Rome are full of CBD stores, each with a varied selection of hemp flowers, topicals, concentrates, and paraphernalia. Dr. Green Weed’s shop is small, but full of marijuana clones all lined up against a wall and products in glass display cases. I was impressed with the plentiful selection of cannabis products ranging from fragrant topicals to CBD hash. You can visit Dr. Green Weed’s Milan location Monday through Friday from 9:30 am to 10 pm, Saturday from 10 am to 10 pm, or Sunday from 12 pm to 6 pm.
Italy may not sell legal recreational cannabis, but it’s well on its way to allowing hemp use. For now, only medical marijuana is legal in Italy. Italian’s highest court has ruled that these hemp shops are illegal, but these stores continue to sell their products. If you do happen to stop by a store and pick up some CBD joints or dabs, avoid smoking in public and consume in a private residence (if your host allows it) or in a safe and discreet spot. Have you tried Italy’s CBD? Are you a fan of CBD products? Let us know in the comments below.
