The most harmful drugs are heroin and cocaine, which are the top but not the sole priority of the national drugs strategy. Most of the drugs taken by British users come from thousands of miles away on different continents. They are shipped into our country by sophisticated chains of international criminals. For instance, the majority of heroin sold in the UK started life as opium poppies in south west Asia, in countries such as Pakistan and Afghanistan. It is processed and moved to Turkey, before being shuttled to Britain through Europe.
Cocaine is similar.
Its origins are more likely to be in South America. A great deal is routed through the Caribbean, stockpiled in Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium and the Netherlands before making it into the hands of British dealers. The Low Countries of Belgium and the Netherlands also tend to be prime sources of synthetic drugs, such as Ecstasy and amphetamine, although production appears to be on the rise in the UK, too. The main source country for cannabis tends to be Morocco. Back to the top Smugglers and their techniques Traffickers try a huge variety of scams to get past Customs officers.