A New Zealand drug task force prepares to intercept a 3.5 ton shipment of cocaine left floating at a drop zone in the middle of the Pacific. Photo courtesy of New Zealand Police.
March 16 (UPI) — An increase in cultivation and processing of the coca plant saw a surge in global production of cocaine over the past two years following an initial slowdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said Thursday.
The area of land being used to cultivate coca, the base ingredient of cocaine, rose 35% between 2020 and 2021 to more than 1,160 sq miles — the largest year-on-year increase since 2016, the office said in a news release. The increase was due to both a rise in coca bush cultivation and advances in converting coca bush to cocaine in its crystal form.
“The pandemic was a bit of a blip for the expansion of cocaine production, but now it has rebounded and is even higher than what it was before,” said UNDOC researcher Antoine Vella.
However, the growth in production and trafficking was hit by the anti-drug operations of law enforcement around the world which saw almost 2,000 tons of cocaine seized in 2021 — busts that showed the matchless ingenuity and determination of traffickers.
Cocaine has been found inside avocados, facemasks and crates of squid while in other cases it was chemically broken down and invisibly mixed into liquids, waxes and fabrics and then extracted and reformed back into its powder form upon arriving at its destination.
Supply growth appears to be demand-driven with many regions showing a steady rise in cocaine users over the past decade although the market remains mostly concentrated in the Americas and parts of Europe.
The office’s Global Report on Cocaine 2023 warns that there is “strong potential for a large expansion in Africa and Asia.”
“The surge in the global cocaine supply should put all of us on high alert,” said UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly. “The potential for the cocaine market to expand in Africa and Asia is a dangerous reality.
“I urge governments and others to closely examine the report’s findings to determine how this transnational threat can be met with transnational responses based on awareness raising, prevention, and international and regional cooperation.”
The report also highlights the emergence of cocaine trafficking hubs in Southeastern Europe and Africa with countries in West and Central Africa increasingly being used as staging zones for the drug.
Spain and Portugal, which until recently were the main points used by traffickers for importing cocaine to Western Europe, have been replaced by North Sea ports such as Antwerp, Rotterdam and Hamburg.
Traffickers are also diversifying from their traditional Central America so that in addition to North America, they are shipping more and more cocaine to Europe. There was also diversification in modes of transport with rises in the use of aircraft — including airdrops — ships, fishing boats, containers, and third-party transport service providers.
Another technique increasingly being employed to get shipments to other countries is dropping the GPS-tagged cocaine cargo in open seas to be collected by other vessels.
Last month, New Zealand authorities seized a 3.5 ton cocaine shipment worth $317 million left floating in the middle of the Pacific.
