Sardinia is a stunning land. Not for its sea or its traditions, but in the psychotropic sense of the word. While the definition may seem far-fetched, any suggestion crumbles when faced with the data describing the reality. Fifty-nine percent of the marijuana plants seized in Italy come from the island . In absolute terms: 121,678 shrubs of varying heights, all classifiable as drugs, out of a total of 206,589 intercepted by law enforcement, were grown on this side of the Tyrrhenian Sea. This is a record by a (huge) margin compared to the regions that follow: "Nationally, an average of 466 plants were seized per 100,000 residents between the ages of 15 and 74, a figure strongly influenced by the high levels recorded in the regions of Calabria and Sardinia, where approximately 3,170 and 10,364 plants per 100,000 inhabitants, respectively, are found." Sardinians are few, but they have plenty of "weed."

The numbers are official and are reported in the "Report to Parliament on the Phenomenon of Addiction in Italy," produced by the Department of Drugs of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. This detailed dossier, published at the beginning of summer each year, details the prevalence of drugs across the peninsula and the islands, as well as the management and treatment systems for the phenomenon. The data is consolidated and covers the entire year 2025. The "medical" picture is accurate: we know how many people, young and old, have been treated by healthcare facilities for their addictions. The criminal phenomenon, however, is inevitably more nuanced: the analysis is based on seized drugs. Drugs not intercepted by controls cannot be counted. But the numbers are already impressive as they are.

The full article by Enrico Fresu appears in the newspaper on newsstands and on the Unione Digital app.

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