Cannabis products are becoming increasingly potent and diverse, while drug gangs working together are creating new security risks on the continent, said Europol, the European Union's law enforcement agency.
Estimated to rake in around 11.4 billion euros annually, the cannabis trade is Europe's largest drug market, even overshadowing cocaine trafficking, Europol and the EU's drug monitoring agency said in a combined report.
"Latest estimates showed that some 22.6 million people (in the EU) between 15 and 64 have used cannabis in the last year," added Europol in a statement.
"Latest data reveal a significant increase in the potency of cannabis products," the Hague-based agency said, referring to the percentage of active ingredient THC in the drug.
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