Drugs

London has a massive cocaine addiction

A newly released analysis of waste water in European cities by King's College London has revealed the massive and unmatched scale of London's cocaine addiction. According to the research, as estimated 23 kilograms of the illicit drug is consumed in the UK capital - more than Barcelona, Amsterdam and Berlin combined. Reporting by Sky News indicates that this level of usage equates to 567,445 doses every day and an estimated street value of £2.75m.

Unlike other cities included in the research, Dr Leon Barron, forensic scientist at King's College London, said that "sustained cocaine usage across the week" was observed in London, with only "a slight rise at the weekend", adding: "cocaine is an everyday drug in London".

Description

This chart shows the estimated daily cocaine consumption based on waste water analysis in selected cities.

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Frequency of cocaine use in the last month among users entering treatment in Europe in 2024
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Number of cocaine users worldwide from 2012 to 2024, by region (in millions)
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Proportion of 16- to 59-year-olds in England and Wales reporting use of cocaine ever in their lifetime from 2001/02 to 2024/25
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Share of the population who consumed cocaine in the last 12 months in Flanders, Wallonia and the Brussels-Capital Region (Belgium) in 2018
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Prevalence of cocaine consumption in Colombia in 2019, by time period
Volume of cocaine seized in Germany from 2014 to 2021 (in kilograms)

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