Deadly new 'legal high' drugs flood global markets

Global issue: Authorities are struggling to control the prevalence of synthetic drugs. Photo: AFP

Dozens of new synthetic drugs, many of them marketed as ''legal highs'' on the internet and made in Asia, emerged last year, replacing traditional, plant-based drugs in Britain and Europe, according to official figures.

The European Union's Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction has highlighted the trend at a time when the use of cannabis, cocaine and heroin - drugs based on plants grown abroad and smuggled into Europe - is slowing.

''The drug situation may now be in a state of flux, with 'new' problems emerging that challenge current policy and practice models: new synthetic drugs and patterns of use are appearing, both on the illicit drug market and in the context of non-controlled substances,'' the centre said in its annual report.

''Today's drug market appears to be less structured around plant-based substances shipped over long distances to consumer markets in Europe,'' the report said.

Advertisement

The centre estimated there were now more than 280 new drugs in circulation, with 73 appearing in the past year alone. Many were made from chemicals designed to mimic the effects of cannabis.

British figures published last week showed that the number of deaths from banned ''legal highs'' had quadrupled in the past five years.

Drugs such as mephedrone or ''meow meow'' had displaced traditional illegal drugs as bestsellers, made in illegal laboratories and controlled by gangs around the world. According to the EU report, amphetamine or speed-type stimulants were the main synthetic drugs trafficked.

Rob Wainwright, the director of Europol, the EU police intelligence agency, said: ''The new drugs phenomenon is now recognised to be a global issue and a globalised market, which makes it particularly difficult to control.

Here is the original post:
Deadly new 'legal high' drugs flood global markets