Most of Europe's cocaine is processed in Netherlands, says EU agency

The illegal processing of cocaine within the European Union primarily happens in the Netherlands, the EU Drug Agency (EUDA) concluded in its annual report, based on figures from 2024. Of the 42 dismantled cocaine processing sites, 24 were located in the Netherlands.

The other sites were located in Spain (7), Portugal (4), Belgium (4), Italy (2), and Germany (1).

The Netherlands also ranked high for heroin processing. Of the 20 dismantled heroin packaging and cutting locations, 15 were in the Netherlands. Like 2023, the Netherlands was also the leader for MDMA labs, with 47 of the 59 dismantled labs being located here. In 2023, there were 23 out of the total 36 dismantled MDMA labs.

For dismantled amphetamine labs, the Netherlands ranked second. Of the 252 dismantled sites, 23 were located in the Netherlands in 2024. The Czech Republic takes that crown with 184 sites.

For the report, the agency examined figures from the 27 EU member states, plus Turkey and Norway. Intercepted cocaine imports fell by 20 percent in 2024, compared to 410 tons in 2023. However, the number of locations where cocaine imports were intercepted increased. According to the EU, it appears that cocaine is entering Europe in smaller shipments at more locations.