Alongside the more well-known substances available on illicit drug markets, a number of other substances with hallucinogenic, anaesthetic, dissociative or depressant properties are used in Europe: these include LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide), hallucinogenic mushrooms, ketamine, GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyrate) and nitrous oxide. On this page, you can find the latest analysis of the situation regarding these substances in Europe, including seizures, prevalence and patterns of use, treatment entry, harms and more.

Overall, there is evidence to suggest that ketamine is likely to be consistently available in some national drug markets and may have become an established drug of choice in some settings. It is also reported to be used in combination with other substances, such as stimulants. In Ireland, for example, the intentional mixing of cocaine and ketamine has been identified at music festivals, as have ketamine-related medical incidents during 2022 and 2023. Ketamine may also be added to other drug mixtures, including MDMA powders and tablets, potentially making inadvertent consumption an issue. Ketamine has also been found in mixtures sold as ‘pink cocaine’ or ‘tucibi’, which are more likely to contain ketamine and other synthetic drugs, such as amphetamines or MDMA. In contrast to some other parts of the world, mixtures sold as pink cocaine are less likely to contain the synthetic drug 2C-B, which has historically been associated with this product. At least 10 countries reported the detection of pink cocaine to the EU Early Warning System’s database on new drugs, with most of the cases reported by Spain. It is also interesting to note that while the overall figure remains low, both the quantity of 2C-B seized and the number of countries reporting seizures increased in 2022, with 14 countries reporting seizures amounting to just under 6 kilograms of this drug.

This page is part of the European Drug Report 2024, the annual overview of the drug situation in Europe.