Story perspectives

UN: Global Drug Output Quadruples, Synthetic Opioids Surge

6/26/2026

Summary

Story summary

UN Office on Drugs and Crime warns that illicit drug markets are expanding, as 2024 cocaine output reaches about 4,100 metric tons—a fourfold rise over a decade.
Methamphetamine seizures show production growing 13 percent annually, while new synthetic opioids surged after Afghanistan’s opium harvest collapsed following the Taliban’s cultivation ban.
Psychoactive synthetic opioids rose 10 percent in North America, 80 percent in Europe and 150 percent in Oceania during 2023-2024.

1 of 1

Story summary

UN Office on Drugs and Crime warns that illicit drug markets are expanding, as 2024 cocaine output reaches about 4,100 metric tons—a fourfold rise over a decade.
Methamphetamine seizures show production growing 13 percent annually, while new synthetic opioids surged after Afghanistan’s opium harvest collapsed following the Taliban’s cultivation ban.
Psychoactive synthetic opioids rose 10 percent in North America, 80 percent in Europe and 150 percent in Oceania during 2023-2024.