For years I lived in Heaven, er I mean Italy, where hemp was integrated into culture, industry, and fashion centuries ago. One 11,500-year-old hemp fiber artifact was found near Rome. The oldest cookbook was published there and one recipe contained hemp.
Today, Italy has the best potential to be the world’s supplier of foods made with hempseed. Grain is hemp’s only stable, proven, robust, 100% legal market worldwide; not coincidentally also still the largest, with the most consumers and retailers current and potential, globally. Cannabis Light (smokable hemp) is often the subject of political grandstanding by fascists, and the CBD market is fragmented. Fiber has the history but grain is the future.
However, it’ll take cooperation between Brussels, Rome, the region, and private investors and foundation grants. Public + private money, and of course >1.000 ha of nearby suitable land at a suitable latitude with a suitable environment and suitable access to agronomy equipment, transport, and labor.
The first stage is field trials with a concurrent breeding program. All that before you can install shelling and pressing equipment, then develop products and brands. Simultaneously you could start branding products made elsewhere to generate cash and test your marketing. Once there are products, mass-market marketing is next (“Buy Canapa”).
A seed processing center would give a market to farmers in other regions of Italy and would inspire other brands to introduce a canapa line extension.
It’s a unique opportunity to 1) leverage l’Italia’s traditional strengths (food); 2) support agriculture and industry, especially one attractive to il giovane; 3) reclaim the heritage of canapa; and 4) spawn 1,001 new products and brands, sold from small country restaurants to around the world. There’s no doubt a boatload of E.U. grant money to get it started.
The animal husbandry industry will benefit as well, with access to hempseed products. That helps the hempseed product and processing segments as it provides an outlet for substandard or excess production.
There are already dozens of hemp food brands in Italy. It can’t be done easily with an artisanal approach, as cost reduction is crucial for wide acceptance.
Excerpt from Seedy! by Richard Rose.
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