Europe, a stronghold of MDMA – Liberation

Behind the ocean of cocaine Who swept over Europe, other substances trace their path in the shadows. And their traffic continues to grow. Like MDMA (methylènedioximethathamphetamine), component of ecstasy and molecule of the amphetamines family. The MDMA, baptized « Drug of Love » for the effect of euphoria it provides, is thus the subject of a vast traffic on European territory.

This boom is first explained by significant demand. According to the European agency surveys on drugs, the MDMA enjoys a good image with consumers. It can be swallowed in « parachute », by enveloping the powder in a sheet of cigarette paper, or sniffs once the crystals are crushed. As for the cachet of ecstasy, he now sports flashy colors, struck with logos to the glory of pop culture, such as the character Super Mario, the emblem of the automaker Tesla or the Trogru de Donald Trump.

According to the joint report of Europol and the European drug agency published Thursday, March 27, the MDMA market is booming and pushes the traffic to extend. According to the conclusions of the document, the annual turnover of the European retail MDMA is estimated at at least 594 million euros, or 72.4 million Ecstasy stamps consumed in the European Union. Enough to make Europe a central place in synthetic drug trafficking.

Because the production of MDMA is indeed a European company that does not know the crisis. According to Catherine de Bolle, director of Europol, « Europe is a key player in the synthetic drug market and a world supplier of MDMA, both for production and for traffic on national and international markets. »

Historically, the production of this synthetic drug was done in the Netherlands and Belgium. “In 2013, more than 80 % of dismantled laboratories were located in the Netherlands and Belgium. In these countries, police have specialized in the dismantling of these laboratories, Pointe Rita Jorge, Euda analyst and specialist in synthetic drugs attached by Release.

According to her, in recent years have been marked by a diversification of production places in Europe, with new emerging players. «  »Criminal organizations want to avoid police checks and increase their profits. So they pass the borders and target European countries where local authorities may have less experience in the fight against this type of traffic, underlines Rita Jorge. This phenomenon can also be explained by the desire to increase profits and reach new customers in less competitive areas».

Thus, dozens of « kitchens » where the MDMA is made were dismantled in Poland, Germany, Bulgaria or France. At least 48 sites in Europe were closed by the authorities in 2022 against 25 in 2021, according to the latest figures from EUDA and Europol.

Decans, stoves, test tubes, precision scales … In January 2024, an operation carried out by the Spanish police allowed the dismantling of a production laboratory installed in a house not far from Valence, isolated in a wooded area. About 1,900 liters of liquid MDMA have been seized as well as 1,000 liters of chemical precursors, essential for the manufacture of drugs. What produce two tonnes of amphetamines. In Valencia, the traffickers arrested were of Dutch nationality, illustration of a certain Flemish « know -how » and a « industrialization»MDMA production according to the antisputing office (OFAST).

Massively consumed in Europe, the MDMA made on the old continent is also doomed to export. The joint report of Europol and Euda evokes the development of the traffic of this substance to Latin America. With certain methods popular with traffickers. Such as barter of stups, without financial consideration. “For three years, cases where criminal organizations have exchanged MDMA for cocaine are increasing, Ritle Rita Jorge. In South America, the market value of the MDMA is not the same as in Europe. For traffickers, these new markets are of great interest.»»

France is not spared by the influx of amphetamines. On February 21, customs officers got their hands on 125,000 pills, or 63 kilos of Ecstasy hidden in a car to Paris. A market value estimated at 1.2 million euros. “In France, in 2024, the seizures exceeded 9 million tablets or equivalent in powder, said to Release Ivana Obradovic, Deputy Director of the French Observatory for Drugs and Addictive Trends. It is a considerable amplification. An unprecedented figure. The only year 2024 was marked by volumes of seizures of MDMA and Ecstasy equivalent to the seizures carried out throughout the decade. « 

In addition to the fact that the seizures carried out represent the emerged face of the iceberg and are subject to the activity of the police,, “France is distinguished as a country of drug destination but especially as a country of transit. The three-quarters of the seizures carried out in France are intended abroad ”, underlines Ivana Obradovic.

In Europe as in France, stimulants are in vogue. In its powder form, MDMA competes cocaine on the European market, due to a much lower price. While the gram of cocaine can be bought around 60 euros, an MDMA pochon of the same quantity costs an average of 40 euros. According to the latest OFDT data, for the first time the price of an ecstasy cachet has passed below 10 euros.