The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), which in 2024 will become the new European Drugs Agency with an expanded mandate, presented its annual report on Friday 16 June in which it expresses concern about the high availability of drugs and their “increased diversity”.
“Drug users are now exposed to a wider range of psychoactive substances, which are often of high potency and purity. As these substances can be sold in the form of powders or similar-looking pills, consumers may not know what they are taking”, explained the EMCDDA in a press release.
The analysis covers a wide range of illicit drugs, from opioids and stimulants to new cannabis-based products and dissociative drugs (e.g. ketamine).
It also takes stock of new psychoactive substances (NPS), which continue to pose a public health problem in Europe. In 2022, 41 new drugs were reported for the first time by the EU Early Warning System (EWS), bringing the total number of NPS monitored by the EMCDDA to 930.
Cocaine that is produced in South America is also reaching the EU in large quantities, according to the report, with a total of 303 tonnes seized in 2021. During the presentation of this report, the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, announced new action plans with Colombia and Ecuador.
The report provides a general overview of all drugs in the EU, including cannabis, which remains the most commonly used drug in Europe. Around 8% (22.6 million) of European adults (aged 15–64) have used cannabis in the past year.
In addition, one million Europeans took opioids in 2021. Heroin remains the most commonly used illicit opioid with high availability.
The quantities of heroin that have been seized doubled in 2021 to reach 9.5 tonnes in the EU.
Link to the report: https://aeur.eu/f/7jy (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)