Six of the seven new synthetic opioids reported for the first time to the EU Early Warning System (EWS) last year were nitazenes, according to the EMCDDA’s European drug report 2024 – the highest number notified in a single year.
More than 80 new synthetic opioids have appeared in the European drug market since 2009, the document states, with 16 nitazenes detected since 2016. Nitazenes have been associated with a ‘sharp rise’ in deaths in Estonia and Latvia and localised poisoning outbreaks in France and Ireland, says EMCDDA. However, as nitazenes may not be detected in routine post-mortem toxicology tests in some countries the number of fatalities could be under-estimated, the agency warns.
Outside the EU, nitazenes have been linked to overdoses in the UK, Australia and the US, which is still struggling with ‘staggeringly high’ numbers of drug-related deaths. While synthetic opioids still play a relatively small role in Europe’s drug market compared to the US, they now ‘feature prominently’ in the Baltic countries, the report states. There has so far been no ‘strong signals of disrupted heroin flow’ to the EU following the Taliban’s ban on opium production, it says, but serious concerns remain about potent synthetic opioids filling any potential gaps in the market. ‘The report underlines the need for Europe to improve its preparedness for any possible market shifts, by ensuring adequate prevention and treatment, including access to opioid agonist medicines and harm reduction services, as well as making available sufficient supplies of naloxone,’ EMCDDA says.
Potent synthetic substances, new drug mixtures and changing patterns of use all ‘pose a growing threat in Europe,’ EMCDDA states. ‘People who use drugs are now exposed to a wider range of psychoactive substances, often of high potency or purity, or in new forms, mixtures and combinations.’ By the end of 2023 the agency was monitoring more than 950 NPS, 26 of which were first reported that year.
Meanwhile, record quantities of cocaine have been seized in the EU for the sixth consecutive year, with seizures now exceeding those made in the US. The trafficking of large volumes of the drug into ports like Antwerp and Rotterdam remains a ‘significant factor’ in its high availability, the document says, with 111 tonnes seized in Belgium in 2022, along with 58 tonnes in Spain and 51 in the Netherlands. Traffickers are now also targeting smaller ports in countries like Norway and Sweden following increased levels of law enforcement activity in the main trafficking hubs. Cocaine is now the second most common drug reported in Europe by people entering treatment for the first time or presenting at hospital emergency departments, and is the continent’s most commonly consumed illicit stimulant – used by 4m European adults last year.
‘In this year’s European drug report, we highlight the growing challenges posed by a highly complex and rapidly evolving drug market, where established illicit drugs are widely accessible and potent new synthetic substances continue to emerge,’ said EMCDDA director Alexis Goosdeel. ‘We underline how widespread polysubstance use is driving a range of health risks, especially when drug mixtures are unknowingly consumed. We also reflect today on potential future problems in the drugs field and the need to be better prepared to face them.’
European drug report 2024: trends and developments here