Brexit and COVID contribute to nearly 50 per cent of ecstasy sold containing none of drug

COVID lockdowns and police operations against supply chains has led to a sharp and potentially harmful increase in fake MDMA, the study published in the Drug Science, Policy and Law journal claimed.Festival goers are therefore being warned about an “unprecedented shift” in the UK MDMA drug market, which has seen huge changes between 2019 and 2021 when Brexit was enacted and COVID lockdowns came into force.The Loop is testing @Parklifefest again this weekend & we are very keen to see what is in circulation this summer.

We envisage it is more like 2019 but there are still some cathinones in circulation & a few sock drawer & old stock legacy pills from last year doing the rounds.

https://t.co/HGJtNsf8S9— The Loop (@WeAreTheLoopUK) June 8, 2022In a Drug Science blog post outlining the study that was conducted by drug-checking charity The Loop in partnership with British universities, it noted that the “biggest surprise when comparing 2019 and 2021 samples tested by The Loop lab was the large decrease in the detection of MDMA”.The Loop attended three of the same summer music festivals in the summers of 2019 and 2021, before and after Brexit and COVID lockdowns.Research chemists analysed more than 2,000 substances of concern surrendered to amnesty bins and obtained by on-site support services.

The chemistry team compared the identity of substances known or reasoned to be purchased as MDMA, in tablet and crystal form, between the two years.Some users in the study reported ill-effects such as panic, psychosis and prolonged insomnia.In 2019 when the research was carried out at the same festivals, only seven per cent of the pills tested did not contain MDMA.Additionally, research from the harm reduction project Wedinos found that.