Methamphetamine: Among Mexico’s most Dangerous Exports to the U.S.
U.S. supply-side strategy is failing as production of the
dangerous drugs soars and expansion of its trade widens
Recent reports issued by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) in Washington D.C. have concluded that Mexico has become the United States’ primary source of the methamphetamines now flooding the country. In response, U.S. and Mexican authorities have initiated a major domestic operation to crack down on the production of the dangerous drug. The North American demand for methamphetamines has been growing at a precipitous pace since the early 90s. As a result, the focus of the Bush administration’s current war on the drug has been one of containment and reduction, with less attention being paid to drug prevention and treatment.
The United Nations’ Office on Drugs and Crime recently released its annual World Drug Report which stated that globally there are 24.9 million users of methamphetamines and that in the United States alone, there are 12 million who acknowledge habitually using the drug. The estimated global production of methamphetamines in 1990 was 70 metric tons; fourteen years later it peaked at 291 metric tons. The average price per pound of methamphetamines in the U.S. is 13 thousand dollars, according to the United States Department of Justice, for an estimated value of 7.56 billion dollars of methamphetamines produced and exported to a worldwide market.
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