Young hands in Mexico feed growing U.S. demand for heroin
Abusers of prescription pharmaceuticals in America are looking for cheaper highs
The New York Times (US)
Saturday, August 29, 2015
Saturday, August 29, 2015
As heroin addiction soars in the United States, a boom is underway south of the border, reflecting the two nations’ troubled symbiosis. Officials from both countries say that Mexican opium production increased by an estimated 50 percent in 2014 alone, the result of a voracious American appetite, impoverished farmers in Mexico and entrepreneurial drug cartels that straddle the border. A crackdown on painkiller abuse has made the habit highly expensive. The legalization of marijuana in some U.S. states, has pushed down prices, leading many Mexican farmers to switch crops.
tags:
