EU drug and police agencies are warning that the almost complete collapse of opium production in Afghanistan last year could mean a shift in the heroin market towards the supply into Europe of highly dangerous synthetic opioids.
She said monitoring was key and that the EMCDDA was developing its capacity in this regard. She said what was particularly worrying about the synthetic opioids is that they are “hundreds of times more potent than heroin”.
The report said the presence of Mexican cartels in Europe “further substantiates the potential threat”, not least because they are the largest supplier of illicit opioids, mainly fentanyl, to the US.
Last September, gardaí revealed that Irish gangs had travelled to Mexico as part of a European criminal consortium to discuss the possibility of importing fentanyl into Europe.
The
reported that the Irish gang, based in west Dublin and led by two brothers, was the country’s largest heroin trafficking outfit. Gardaí said the gang, along with European associates, met with the Sinaloa cartel, one of the main producers of fentanyl.