The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) has warned that the European Union must prepare for the consequences of a future heroin shortage.

Following the Taliban's ban on poppy cultivation in 2022, the United Nations reported that opium production in Afghanistan has decreased by 95 percent.

According to the Euractiv website, Alexis Goosdeel, director of the EMCDDA, said that the analysis of satellite images shows that this ban is being implemented.

He added that Afghanistan's heroin reserves have not yet run out and are in route, so the reduction in the market may take some time.

However, Goosdeel said that there are signs of a shortage of heroin supply in some EU member states and the UK.

While presenting the centre’s latest annual report, he said, " The question is what will happen next? The risk is that those who are using heroin will switch to drugs that are cheaper, easily produced and much more dangerous than heroin. Some of them can be 700 times more potent than morphine."

The United States has seen a significant increase in opioid overdose deaths related to fentanyl derivatives, but Goosdeel says it is difficult to predict what substances people in the EU might turn to.

Heroin is the most commonly used illegal opioid in Europe and is responsible for a significant portion of health problems associated with illegal drug use.

Unlike the booming use of cocaine, heroin is used by older groups and has fewer new users.