Colombia Reigns Number One In Cocaine Production

Colombia can keep its title this year as the world's number one producer of cocaine.

According to the International Narcotics Control Board's 2011 report released today, 62,000 hectares -- 620 million square meters -- of Colombian land was devoted to the cultivation of the illicit narcotic in 2010. That amount is equivalent to more than 57,000 soccer fields.

Though the area decreased by 11,000 hectare, or 15 percent, from 2009, Colombia still encompasses the largest portion of South America's 154,200 hectares of illicit coca bush cultivation. Peru follows closely behind with 61,200 hectares, and Bolivia houses 31,000 hectares.

Despite ongoing cocaine seizures, including a shift from North American consumer markets to source areas in South America, the region has seen only a 6 percent hectare decrease since 2009.

From South America, a vast majority of the illegal product is shipped to North America –- the world’s largest drug market -- by both air and water.

Mexico remains a major hub of transit for narcotics traveling north to the U. S., trafficking 90 percent of the nation's cocaine. But pressure from Mexican authorities has forced some drug cartels to move their operations to other Central American countries. Honduras, Costa Rica and Nicaragua have risen to the occasion and presented themselves as major transit centers for drug smuggling to the U.S.

According to the report, traffickers often use speed boats and submarines, along with light aircraft, to move illicit substances north from South America.

The International Narcotics Control Board, an independent monitoring body of the United Nations, publishes an annual report that summarizes nationwide drug control and identifies trends. Aside from its findings on cocaine production and trafficking, the organization also warned of a recent influx in the use of illegal Internet pharmacies to distribute illicit drugs.

Often times, these pharmacies advertise their services through social media to reach a larger audience and convince customers that they are legitimate. However, the World Health Organization has found that over half of the “medicines” sold through these pharmacies are counterfeit.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article miscalculated the cocaine acreage-to-soccer field ratio, and the figures have been adjusted.

Comments

[Daniel Mairena]

12:09 PM on 02/29/2012

This article fails to distinguish between coca, the plant that is used to make a harmless tea or that is chewed as a mild stimulant, and that also plays a major role in indigenous (native american) culture in many parts of south america, and cocaine, which essentially concentrates the stimulant in coca, and processes it up with various other toxic substances. it would be like confusing cough medicine, which has a legal use in society, with crystal meth. "620 million square meters -- of Colombian land was devoted to the cultivation of the illicit narcotic in 2010" is therefore an inaccurate statement because cocaine is not cultivated on land, it is processed in laboratories FROM the coca plant. Also the article fails to provide information to support the headline that Colombia is #1 in cocaine production. it only supports the statement that colombia is #1 in cultivation of coca. production is another thing entirely that is indeed harder to track, but the distinction is important, particularly when there are politicians and government officials who claim that various south american leaders (like evo morales of bolivia, for example) are therefore involved in trafficking when they support the cultivation of coca, which by itself is not and should not be illegal - as long as it is for legal purposes. The headline and several sentences in this article should be reworded for accuracy, or additional information should be included to clarify the difference between coca and cocaine.

[Jibaro del Centro]

05:14 AM on 02/29/2012

In addition to having more street thieves per square mile than any other country in the world.

[inthedesert]

07:50 PM on 02/28/2012

And, most of it comes to us through our "friendly" neighbor, Mehico...............LMAO.