Heroin's Global Reach

The Product
According to a 2009 U.N. report, the world demand for opium hovers at about 5,000 tons. This is far less than what is produced, which suggests that a large amount of raw opium is being withheld from the market. "Stockpiles of illicit opium now probably exceed 10,000 tons — enough to satisfy two years of world heroin addiction, or three years of medical [morphine] prescription," says Antonio Maria Costa, executive director of the U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime.

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