New drug report shows record need for harm reduction and support services

A new report that pulls together the most recent data on drug consumption, prevalence of use, price and availability shows illicit drug use continues to steadily increase across the board, with the NZ Drug Foundation warning that investment in harm reduction, early intervention and support hasn’t kept pace.

The Foundation’s latest annual Drug use in Aotearoa report for 2023/24 shows sharp increases in methamphetamine and cocaine consumption, and an uptick in frequency of use.

Drug Foundation Executive Director Sarah Helm says the report underlines the need for greater investment in harm reduction and support services.

“This report shows there is more need than ever for accessible harm reduction information and early intervention so that we can help people prevent issues before they arise,” she says.

“The sharp increase in cocaine and methamphetamine use has happened against the backdrop of long-term under-investment in addiction services and the sector is now under intense strain. We urgently need to turn that around.”

While New Zealand has historically seen low levels of cocaine use, consumption increased 229% in 2024 compared with the previous three years’ average. Methamphetamine use increased 74% over the same period.

Helm says the report also shows that people are using cocaine and methamphetamine more often.

“Information from the NZ Drug Trends Survey shows that of people who used cocaine, 29% reported using it monthly or more often in 2024, compared with 22% in 2017/18,” she says.

“Worryingly, 29% of people who used methamphetamine in the past six months reported using it daily or near daily in 2024, up from only 19% in 2022/23.”

“This increase in the proportion of people using methamphetamine daily or near daily is concerning, and suggests we will see a significant uptick in people with substance use disorder,” says Helm.

“Unfortunately, the support systems we have were already strained before these latest increases in problematic use.”

Cannabis, MDMA and psychedelics were the most commonly used illicit drugs in New Zealand, which Helm says all rank down the lower end of potential for harm.

“Many of our most popular illicit substances have well-documented medicinal uses and are being actively studied for their potential to treat a range of health conditions, so it’s likely at least some of the use in this report is self-medication,” she says.

“We think it’s time to enable more medical access to the likes of psychedelics and MDMA and stop prosecuting people who use them.”

Helm says the big increases in cocaine and methamphetamine use demonstrate the folly of New Zealand’s 50-year-old drug laws.

“Our current system feels like we have control, but the data shows it’s quite the opposite. This report shows methamphetamine and cocaine use has surged despite record-breaking drug busts and seizures, and anecdotally we are hearing about increased harm as a result.”

“Under our current laws we have relinquished almost all control to the global black market, which in recent years has sold record-breaking amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine into the country.”

Key findings:

• Methamphetamine

  • Nationwide, consumption doubled in the second half of 2024 (compared to the first half of the year)

  • 29% of people who use methamphetamine reported using it daily or near daily in 2024, up from 19% in 2022/23

• Cocaine

  • Consumption more than tripled in 2024 compared to the previous three years’ average (although this was off a low base)

  • 2.4% of adults reported using cocaine at least once in the past year in 2023/24, compared with 1.3% in 2022/23

  • Cocaine use is much more common among men (3.6%) than among women (1.3%)

• MDMA

  • 4.8% of adults reported using MDMA at least once in the past year in 2023/24, compared with 3.6% in 2022/23

  • Young people are more likely to use MDMA than older New Zealanders. 10.5% of people aged 15-24 reported using MDMA at least once in the past year in 2023/24, compared with 8.2% in 2022/23

• Psychedelics

  • 3.1% of adults reported using psychedelics at least once in the past year in 2023/24, compared with 1.3% in 2017/18

  • 62% of psychedelic consumers reported that LSD is ‘easy’ or ‘very easy’ to obtain in 2024, compared with 44% in 2017/18.

Notes on data sources:

Drug use in Aotearoa 2023/24 relies on the most recent data available at the time of publication.

The report compiles:

• Drug consumption data from the National Drug Intelligence Bureau’s wastewater testing programme to the end of 2024

• Prevalence of use data from the Ministry of Health’s NZ Health Survey to 30 June 2024

• Data on perceptions of price and availability from the Massey University’s NZ Drug Trends Survey to the end of 2024.  

NZ Health Survey data on prevalence of use is not yet available for the final six months of 2024 – the period with the sharpest increase in methamphetamine consumption detected in wastewater testing.