Investing for the future of Rovigo: the cultivation of therapeutic hemp

The uses of the hemp plant are so many and cross between traditional products and new studies that only modern technologies allow. There are many characteristics that this plant possesses that define it as a sustainable plant and in line with the principles of circular economy. In this work I will particularly focus on one of the hundreds uses that can be made of hemp: therapeutic cannabis. Its millennial history has come down to us, creating research and development opportunities in many countries. In Italy, this issue is highly controversial for mostly political-legislative but also cultural reasons. A very restrictive legislation and a refusal to open up to this market, in fact, limits what could be crucial developments of economically and demographically disadvantaged territories. Thus, based on these assumptions and on comparisons of already existing realities, I will explain what could be the positive implications of an industrialization of therapeutic hemp in the province of Rovigo, one of the weakest, but at the same time with excellent potential, in the Veneto region. An investment of this kind could lead to the creation of jobs, an increase in local and national revenues, an incentive for high-value research, territorial specialization, an increase in international investments, improved treatments for Italian patients, investments in the infrastructure of the concerned province. Would Rovigo be up to this?