In 2024, five times as many types of drugs were seized as in 2000, and the UN agency believes that drug producers are developing new synthetic drugs "in an attempt to circumvent regulations and avoid detection."
The global opium and heroin market has been severely impacted since the Taliban in Afghanistan imposed a ban on poppy cultivation in 2022. This has led drug traffickers to turn to synthetic alternatives, such as fentanyl, according to the report.
"We are seeing an unprecedented increase in new types of drugs on the market, and worryingly, some are more potent or dangerous than before," said UNODC Director Monica Juma in a statement.
