Global cocaine production reached 3,700 tons in 2023, representing a 34% increase compared to the previous year, according to the latest report from the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), an independent body within the United Nations system. That means that coca cultivation in Colombia also grew.
The document, presented this Thursday in Vienna, points to Colombia as the main driver of this unprecedented expansion, due to the simultaneous growth of illicit coca crops and the sophistication of illegal laboratories processing cocaine hydrochloride for international markets.
The INCB’s annual report, which analyzes global trends in controlled substances, warns that the cocaine market has become the fastest-growing among all regulated drugs.
The coca cultivation phenomenon has completely reshaped the geography of drug trafficking, transforming South America — and particularly Colombia — into the epicenter of a network that no longer recognizes borders and has managed to diversify its routes to supply growing demand in regions that until recently were considered peripheral in this illegal business.
New UN report warns about coca cultivation in Colombia
INCB attributes most of the supply expansion to the Colombian context, where 2023 saw an increase both in the area planted with coca bushes and in the installed capacity to process the leaf into drug products ready for export.
This dual dynamic, according to the body, once again places the country among the world’s main suppliers of the narcotic, consolidating a trend that annual reports have been documenting for several years.
The document emphasizes that the phenomenon is not merely quantitative. The international cocaine market, the board notes, “has diversified and is more global,” abandoning its former concentrated character to become a flexible network that adjusts routes and logistics in response to shifts in demand and law enforcement pressure.
This adaptability has allowed drug trafficking organizations to respond quickly to emerging opportunities across different continents.
The surge in production in South America has been accompanied by a troubling shift in consumption toward regions previously considered transit zones. Africa and Asia now show “clear signs” of growth in the number of users, according to the report.
United Nations statistics cited by INCB indicate that between 2013 and 2023, the number of cocaine users worldwide rose from 17 million to 25 million, with a marked trend toward expansion in new markets.
The African case is particularly revealing of this transformation. The board warns that the continent has ceased to be merely a transit zone for shipments bound for Europe and has consolidated its role as a final destination for significant quantities of the drug.
Seizures in Africa increased by 48% in 2023 compared to the previous year, and at least 4,700 people have received treatment for cocaine use disorder in West, Central, and Southern Africa in recent years.
In Asia, the report highlights the emergence of new drug concealment methods, such as chemical alteration to evade controls or integration into carrier materials such as plastics or textiles, underscoring the sophistication of trafficking networks and their ability to adapt to enforcement measures.
Europe remains the leading destination
Despite the geographic diversification of consumption, Western and Central Europe have remained, for the fifth consecutive year, the main destination for cocaine produced in South America.
Seizures in this region even exceed those recorded in North America, confirming the strength of a market that criminal organizations have worked for decades to consolidate.
Between January 2019 and June 2024, more than 1,826 tons of drugs destined for European ports were seized, of which 82% corresponded to cocaine — that is, 1,487 tons.
These figures reflect not only the scale of the flow of narcotics to the continent, but also the capacity of authorities to intercept shipments in a context where transported volumes continue to grow steadily.
For its part, cocaine demand in the United States has shown a sustained upward trend in a context marked by the diversification of the drug market and the expansion of distribution networks.
Following the surge recorded during the pandemic, indicators such as seizures, hospitalizations, and wastewater analysis point to stable or rising consumption in several metropolitan areas.
Reports from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) indicate that supply has remained high, with a steady flow coming primarily from Colombia, the world’s largest producer.
The higher purity of the alkaloid and its frequent mixing with fentanyl — a much more potent synthetic opioid — have increased the risk of overdose, even among occasional users.
Public health experts warn that, although the opioid crisis remains a priority, cocaine has regained prominence, particularly in urban sectors with greater purchasing power. The market has also been boosted by digital platforms and encrypted messaging systems that facilitate retail distribution.
The domino effect in the Andean region
The report also outlines the collateral impact of this productive expansion in neighboring countries such as Ecuador, where more than 290 tons of cocaine were seized in 2024, exceeding the previous year’s volume by 30%.
This dynamic has coincided with an alarming intensification of violence: Ecuador recorded 6,964 violent deaths in 2024, reaching a rate of 38.76 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, a figure that has quintupled in just five years.
The board links this deterioration to the emergence of local and transnational criminal groups tied to drug trafficking that are competing for control of routes and territories.
One of the emerging concerns noted by the board is the incipient trend toward the growth of coca bushes in Central American territories such as Honduras, where, in July 2025, some 40,000 plants of coca were seized.
Although this figure does not correspond directly to Colombia, it reveals market pressure and an adaptive capacity among criminal networks that could expand production into new areas with favorable conditions, testing the state response and further complicating the regional landscape.
The board concludes that this process of market expansion and the diversification of routes and cultivation areas is reshaping global drug control challenges, consolidating cocaine as the fastest-growing substance with the greatest presence in the international market, a phenomenon driven primarily by the expansion of Colombian coca crops.