The corona pandemic only briefly affected the supply and demand for narcotics in Europe.

According to the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction in its annual report published on Wednesday, the problems in many countries in 2021 are similar to those before the pandemic, if not greater.

Cannabis most popular drug

Daniel Deckers

responsible for “The Present” in the political editorial team.

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The market is characterized by a consistently high availability of drugs of all kinds, a consistently high active ingredient content and purity of the substances and a further increasing diversity in utility models, writes the authority.

In addition, there are new threats, most notably the cutting of synthetic cannabinoids in cannabis products and an increase in the production of synthetic drugs in Europe, particularly methamphetamine.

Cannabis resin and herbal cannabis remain the two drugs most used in Europe.

Saturation of the market is just as unlikely as a decline in demand, which varies from country to country.

How dynamic the market is can be seen from several indicators.

The indexed price has remained largely the same over the past ten years, while the active ingredient content has increased significantly.

Cannabis is therefore playing an increasingly important role both in drug-related emergencies and in the demand for specialized therapies.

With regard to the creation of state-regulated cannabis markets by more and more states, Sibylline states that "to protect public health, the impact of any regulatory changes in this area should be carefully monitored".

The authorities also gave no all-clear with regard to cocaine.

About 15 percent of all first-time treatments in Europe are related to cocaine, it is said for the year 2020. The number of people who started treatment for problems with crack has tripled to more than 7,000 within less than five years.

This form of cocaine can be smoked or injected, and in Europe (as in the United States) it is used predominantly by "vulnerable and marginalized groups".

The health and social problems are correspondingly large.

The manufacture and use of methamphetamine are becoming increasingly popular in Europe.

This drug is now seized not only in the Czech Republic and neighboring regions, but also in some Baltic countries.

The synthetic drug is now also being produced in Belgium and the Netherlands.

From there, many traces point to Mexico.

"This raises concerns that Europe is now playing a more prominent role in global supply as methamphetamine is manufactured for export to highly profitable markets," the report says.