Cocaine production increases in the Americas

The cultivation and production of coca-based drugs have undergone a notable development in the countries of the American continent, announced the Organization of American States (OAS) on Friday 11 November. Cocaine is gaining momentum across the region: seizures rose from 911 tons in 2016 to 1,091 in 2020, according to the 2022 report on the drug supply in the Americas, covering the period 2016-2020.

Data for Colombia show that “productivity has increased due to changes in processing and the use of different varieties of coca with a longer productive life”, points out the document, specifying that Peru has observed the same trend. Laboratories have greater capacity, faster production and greater access to precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of cocaine.

All of these factors increase productivity, while the level of crop eradication varies widely between countries. In Colombia, it has increased from 18,000 hectares in 2016 to more than 130,000 in 2020, while it has dropped considerably in Peru (from 30,000 hectares in 2016 to 6,272 in 2020) and in Bolivia (from 6,577 in 2016 to 2,177 in 2020).

“The use of more efficient production techniques and the misuse of chemical precursors have led to an increase in the quantity, potency and harmfulness of certain drugs”warns Luis Fernando Lima Oliveira, Secretary for Multidimensional Security of the OAS.

The supply of narcotics varies from country to country. Heroin, for example, is considered a concern only in Guatemala, Mexico and the United States. In the United States, opioids have caused a deadly epidemic: in 2021, 107,622 Americans died of poisoning or overdose.

Law enforcement agencies find it very difficult to detect them because, due to their high potency, “they are trafficked in small quantities and are usually mixed with other drugs or sold under the name of another drug”explains the report.