The Lisbon-based European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) is the central source of comprehensive information on drugs in Europe. Its main task is to collect and disseminate data on the use of substances controlled by the United Nations drug conventions (1). However, in recent years, the Centre has become increasingly active in monitoring new substances not listed in these conventions, but which may pose health and social risks to our societies. Today this activity is carried out under the terms of a specific legal instrument adopted by the Council of the European Union in 2005.