This report examines the effects of the upsurge in U.S. fentanyl use on opium producing areas in Mexico. By using available quantitative data on Mexican opium production as well as qualitative field research from opium producing communities in Nayarit and Guerrero, this paper offers valuable insights into Mexico’s illicit drug trade, demonstrating the extent to which many peasants rely on opium production for survival. With the upsurge in fentanyl use in the US, the demand for Mexican heroin has fallen sharply, with an immediate knock-on for opium producers. Their losses have caused farmers’ profits to disappear, village economies to dry up; and out-migration to increase. These findings have important implications for public security in Mexico, as well as major ramifications for international counter-drug efforts
