EU agency 'concern' over emerging drugs trend

The EU’s drug agency has voiced serious concern overchemicals used in the manufacture of the recreational drug GHB.

The warning comes in a new report by the Lisbon-based European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA).

GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyric acid) - commonly known as ‘liquid ecstasy - surfaced on the recreational nightlife scene in parts of Europe in the 1990s.

Its non-medical use began a decade earlier among body-builders consuming the drug for its hormone-growth effects.

Wednesday’s EMCDDA report says there are concerns over increasing use of the drug’s chemical precursor GBL (gamma-butyrolactone).

It says, “GBL is both easier to obtain and cheaper than many illicit drugs and is now being used and sold as a substitute for GHB.”

Widely used in the chemical industry and commercially available, the substance can be used to manufacture GHB with relative ease, it says.

“But when ingested directly by the user, the precursor is also naturally converted in the body to GHB. And there are already reports of direct consumption of GBL resulting in hospital emergency admissions.”

Some member states, including Italy, Latvia and Sweden, have chosen to control one or both precursors, says the agency.

The EU and its member states have also taken additional voluntary measures to prevent their diversion, including guidance for manufacturers and importers.

The report identified 15 internet chemical suppliers selling GBL in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and the UK. 

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