Myanmar makes more meth than anywhere else. Opium production there also just hit a decade high, report says

A man harvests opium as he works in an opium field outside Loikaw, Kayah state, Myanmar, November 30, 2016. Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters/File AP —

Opium poppy cultivation in Myanmar surged to its highest level in a decade this year as the nation engaged in a civil war remains one of the world’s primary suppliers of illicit drugs, according to a United Nations survey.

The growth solidifies Myanmar’s position as the world’s main known source of illicit opium, especially following sharp declines in production in Afghanistan after the ruling Taliban imposed a ban following their 2021 takeover.

The Myanmar Opium Survey 2025, issued Wednesday by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, found the area where opium is cultivated expanded by 17% from 2024 to 53,100 hectares (131,212 acr