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Glenn Dobson: Drug Detection Agency CEO on an increasing number of Kiwis are using Cocaine · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Kiwis love the cocaine more than ever, according to new research. 31%
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: of respondents to Drug Trends Survey say they've used cocaine.
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: And that's up from 11% in 2018, so now 31.
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: Glenn Dobson is the CEO of the Drug Detection Agency
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: and joins me this morning. Good morning to you, Glenn.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, good morning, Andrew.
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  Speaker 1: So why is coke suddenly so popular?
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, it's interesting, isn't it? It's a survey, obviously, that's
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  Speaker 2: been a voluntary online survey, and what it appears is
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  Speaker 2: it's coming up with three things. Number one, it's cheaper
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  Speaker 2: on inflation-adjusted prices. It appears to be easier to get,
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  Speaker 2: and it also is becoming a lot more socially acceptable.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: Who's taking it? Are they people who used to smoke marijuana?
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  Speaker 1: Are they people who used to take pee? Are they
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: people who like to dance and take MDMA? Yeah.
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: It appears to be a real cross-section of society. What
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  Speaker 2: we're hearing anecdotally and what looks like the seventh survey
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  Speaker 2: as well is that it's not your glamour drug of
• 0:56
  Speaker 2: the 80s and 90s, and it's becoming more popular right
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  Speaker 2: across a broad range of society.
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  Speaker 1: Yes, and it's no longer the glamour drug because it's
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  Speaker 1: getting cheaper and cheaper. So why is cocaine getting cheaper
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  Speaker 1: and cheaper in New Zealand?
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, look, certainly the survey shows that inflation just is
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  Speaker 2: definitely cheaper. In Australia and the United States, we're seeing
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  Speaker 2: it cheaper as well. There appears to be a real
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  Speaker 2: big global supply at the moment. The producers are getting
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  Speaker 2: better at growing the coca plant. They're getting better at
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  Speaker 2: extracting the cocaine. And New Zealand, at the bottom of
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  Speaker 2: the world, as we've said before, is really starting to
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  Speaker 2: be a target for supply of not just cocaine, but
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  Speaker 2: all sorts of drugs for the cartels.
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  Speaker 1: And what is the quality of the cocaine coming into
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  Speaker 1: New Zealand like? I mean, should we be concerned that
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  Speaker 1: it's been cut with other stuff like fentanyl or contaminants?
• 1:45
  Speaker 2: That's always a concern with any sort of drug we're
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  Speaker 2: seeing come over here. One of the things around it is,
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  Speaker 2: fair enough, there's no real quality control in the production
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  Speaker 2: of these types of things. So people, first of all,
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  Speaker 2: don't know what the purity is like. And they also
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  Speaker 2: have no idea what they're taking. They'll just take it
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  Speaker 2: on an honesty system that if they're sold what they're
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  Speaker 2: told is cocaine, it is actually cocaine.
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  Speaker 1: All right. Is there anything we can do about it?
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  Speaker 1: Is there anything we need to do about it?
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  Speaker 2: We definitely need to do something about it. It's a
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  Speaker 2: concern for society. It's a concern for the safety of
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  Speaker 2: the people in the community. Government agencies can do the same,
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  Speaker 2: continue doing the same as what they have been doing.
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  Speaker 2: It's around collecting the data and seeing what the size
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  Speaker 2: of the problem is. It's around educating people on the
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  Speaker 2: risks of the drug, of any drug, but specifically the
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: risks of cocaine. And it's also around continuing enforcement. I
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  Speaker 2: know at the moment there are agencies from New Zealand's
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  Speaker 2: up in Pacific Islands trying to cut the supply chain
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  Speaker 2: through the area.
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  Speaker 1: All right, Glenn, I thank you so much for your
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  Speaker 1: time today. That is Glenn Dobson, who is the Drug
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  Speaker 1: Detention Agency CEO.
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  Speaker 2: For more from Early Edition with Ryan Bridge, listen live
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: to Newstalk ZB from 5am weekdays or follow the podcast
• 2:50
  Speaker 2: on iHeartRadio.