European agency warns of increased risk of serious poisoning and fatal overdoses
New psychoactive substances are being detected in Europe at the rate of one per week, including potent synthetic drugs that pose an increased risk of fatal poisonings, the European Union Drugs Agency warned this Tuesday.
“In 2025, 50 new psychoactive substances were reported for the first time in Europe, bringing the total number monitored to 1,050” by the European Union Agency on Drugs (EUDA), says the 2026 report released today.
Opioids, generally in combination with other substances, continue to be the main cause of drug-induced deaths in Europe, with the Lisbon-based agency estimating that in 2024 there will be at least 7,600 ‘overdoses’ recorded in the European Union (EU).
New synthetic drugs, often highly potent, “are of particular concern”, acknowledges the European agency’s report, which adds that 95 have already been detected in Europe since 2009, seven of which in 2025.
Based on data from 29 countries – the EU plus Turkey and Norway -, the document points out that ‘vaping’ devices containing synthetic and semi-synthetic forms of cannabis were seized in Member States, which “raises concerns that they could serve as a vehicle” for other harmful substances, such as new synthetic opioids.
The European report on the trend and evolution of drugs in Europe also highlights that trafficking networks are “quickly adapting to the efforts of the authorities”, diversifying their routes and methods to avoid detection.
“They increasingly resort to smaller ports, transfers at sea that involve high-speed boats and other vessels, as well as semi-submersibles, drones and sophisticated concealment techniques”, warns the EUDA, which admits that this new reality is imposing greater demands on the authorities.
In addition to health damage and social vulnerability, the report highlights the impact of drug markets on Europe’s security, recognizing that intimidation and violence “continue to be a cause for concern”, including the exploitation and recruitment of vulnerable young people by criminal groups for trafficking and acts of violence.
Regarding cannabis, the document states that supply routes and trafficking methods are evolving, recording an increase in the amount of herbal cannabis trafficked from outside Europe, especially Canada and the United States, and, to a lesser extent, Thailand.
This is the most widely used illicit drug in Europe, with EUDA estimating that 24.9 million European adults aged 15 to 64 used the drug in the last year.
As for heroin, the report states that the European market “is demonstrating resilience”, due to “tactical supply management” by trafficking networks in Afghanistan’s large reserves, estimated at around 12,000 tonnes of opium in 2025, and which are serving as a “buffer for the sharp decline” in poppy cultivation and opium production that followed the ban imposed by the Taliban in 2022.
Ketamine, a medicine used for anesthesia and pain relief, is increasingly being consumed as a psychoactive substance in Europe, says the EUDA, adding that it is becoming more common in some youth environments and nightlife.
“Health risks range from acute intoxication to chronic harm, such as serious bladder injuries associated with heavy consumption,” warns the agency, emphasizing that the most recent European analysis of municipal wastewater revealed that ketamine residues have increased in 40 of the 66 cities that have data available for 2024 and 2025.
Based on data from 2025, the agency warns of the risks to public health arising from the wide availability and consumption of an increasingly diverse range of substances, often of high potency or purity.
“Europe’s ability to face these complex challenges will depend on strengthening service delivery systems and sustained investment in prevention, treatment, harm reduction and social reintegration”, argues EUDA.
