Cocaine consumption by Police district (2022/23)

Cocaine use varies around the country, but it has more than doubled in every region between 2021/22 and 2022/23. Per capita, cocaine consumption is highest in Tāmaki Makaurau, and has more than doubled compared to last year. In 2022/23, an average of 97 mg/day/1000 people was consumed, compared with 45 mg/day/1000 people in 2021/22. 

The wastewater drug testing data presented in the graph has been obtained from the National Drug Intelligence Bureau. The catchment areas cover Police districts, with the exception of Tāmaki Makaurau which covers Waitematā, Counties Manukau, and Auckland City Police districts.

Wastewater testing is only able to quantify the total volume of drugs consumed in a given catchment area, and is not able to provide us with patterns of use among people living there. For example, we don’t know if a larger volume of drugs detected is associated with a larger number of people taking them, an increased concentration of the active substance in the available supply, or an increase in consumption by the same number of people.