Spain, One Of The World’s Biggest Cocaine Consumers

With only 49 cardinal inhabitants, Spain ranks 31st arsenic 1 of nan world’s astir populous countries, but much recently, it has been classed among nan world leaders successful cocaine consumption, according to a BBC Mundo report.

From organization surveys to wastewater study and seizures, respective world studies assistance nan Iberian kingdom nan infamous honour of being among nan main markets for nan achromatic powder. 

Cocaine was erstwhile known arsenic achromatic golden because of nan riches it made for supplier traffickers for illustration Pablo Escobar Gaviria, nan Colombian cartel leader who, earlier his death, was nan world’s astir powerful and wealthiest criminal. But nan mobility is, why does it person specified awesome entreaty among group successful Spain?

Spain leads EU successful cocaine use

According to nan 2025 European Drug Report, 13.3 per cent of Spaniards betwixt nan ages of 15 and 64 person utilized cocaine astatine slightest erstwhile successful their lives, nan highest fig successful nan EU, supra nan 9.4 pèr cent successful France and Denmark, and nan 8 per cent successful nan Netherlands.

Outside nan European Union (EU), nan United Kingdom, Australia, and nan United States thin to subordinate Spain successful nan rankings of nan largest consumers of this drug.

And depletion worldwide, not conscionable successful Spain, is connected nan rise, and there’s nary much unambiguous denotation than nan maturation of its accumulation successful Colombia, wherever successful 2024, 1,000 much tones were manufactured, yielding nan state a proviso worthy $66.6 cardinal astatine nan wholesale value of $25,000 per kilogram, according to nan United Nations Office connected Drugs and Crime.

On a broadside note, but a fascinating fact, is that successful galore locations crossed Colombia, cocaine and cocaine paste are utilized arsenic a rate for nan acquisition of food, clothes, properties, vehicles and more.

Only Belgium has higher seizure numbers

According to a BBC report, Spanish constabulary seized immoderate 118 tons of cocaine successful 2023, much than a 4th of nan 419 tons seized crossed nan EU and 2nd only to nan 123 tons seized successful Belgium, which concentrates overmuch of its trafficking successful nan strategical larboard of Antwerp.

The study adds that successful Spain, cocaine is responsible for 60 per cent of drug-related deaths and half of overdose deaths. Those figures are doubly nan European average, nan BBC noted.

“There is rampant cocaine usage successful this state that is going unreported, and it’s already surpassing pre-recession grounds levels,” said journalist and writer David López Canales, writer of nan effort “A Little Line? Why is truthful overmuch cocaine utilized successful Spain and not talked about?”

So, really did it happen?

How did Spain go 1 of nan world’s largest consumers of cocaine? And why has a information of Spanish nine normalised this highly addictive and perchance deadly substance?

Victor Mendes, a journalist specialising successful supplier routes and laminitis of nan Narcodiario website, has nan answer.

“After nan emergence of this constituent successful nan 1970s successful nan United States, pinch Miami arsenic nan world capital, cocaine dispersed to Spain and Europe,” he said.

Galicia became nan main introduction constituent for cocaine into Europe, Mendez added. With its intricate surface science of heavy estuaries, hidden coves, rugged coastlines, and an extended web of mini islands and cliffs, nan Galician seashore was conscionable correct for maritime smugglers, who began pinch baccy and moved connected to nan much lucrative cocaine business successful nan early 1980s.

“When penalties for smuggling baccy were toughened successful 1982, they switched to hashish and, especially, cocaine. If nan penalties were nan same, they preferred to postulation successful what brought successful much money,” Méndez stated.

Spain, nan cocaine gateway to Europe

Colombian cocaine bosses saw this arsenic an opportunity to usage Spain arsenic their distribution gateway to nan remainder of Europe. Incredibly, nan routes established backmost past are still progressive today, Mendez said.

In nan early years, cocaine successful Spain was neither accessible nor familiar, and was only consumed successful circumstantial environments arsenic a awesome of status, success, aliases transgression. Its estimation was that of a sophisticated, expensive, and exclusive supplier that circulated only successful nan elite circles of society, satisfying nan aspirations of businessmen, bankers, and artists.

Today, that is nary longer true. Cocaine is overmuch cheaper, and anybody and everybody has entree to it some physically and economically. The value of cocaine has remained stiff since nan 1980s, truthful what was costly successful nan past, astir group tin spend successful nan present.

Price of cocaine unchanged since 1980s

While nan prices of housing, food, and proscription (the Spanish CPI has accrued much than fourfold since 1982), a gram of cocaine, from which 10 to 20 doses are obtained, still costs nan aforesaid arsenic it did then: astir 60 euros aliases 10,000 pesetas.

“The summation successful accumulation successful Colombia and Peru intends location is much cocaine, purer and comparatively cheaper, passim Europe,” Joan R. Villalbí, nan Spanish government’s delegate for nan National Drug Plan, told BBC Mundo.

Another logic why Spain ranks precocious successful cocaine depletion is tourism. With astir 90 cardinal visitors each year, areas specified arsenic nan Costa del Sol, Barcelona, Madrid, and nan Balearic and Canary Islands are location to a wealthiness of nightlife, which includes a batch of recreational supplier usage and abuse. Mendez said nan precocious influx of visitors facilitates distribution and increases consumption.

In an ironic aliases moreover sarcastic way, cocaine has go democratised successful Spain, arsenic good arsenic trivialised, and possibly not taken arsenic earnestly arsenic it should be.