It was not the Government's case against them which came to trial, however, but the complaint of six of the growers and their appeal for an injunction against the government officers. The Tenth Amendment, by invading the reserved right of the State of California to provide for and regulate the production, cultivation, and growing of agricultural crops within its borders, When the growing and production were conducted solely for intrastate transactions;.
They also alleged that the officers were endeavouring to apply the Act in such a way as to deprive the plaintiffs of their property without just compensation, and that the enforcement of the Act did not come within the police powers of the United States so far as the growing and production of edible blue poppy-seed was concerned. That it be decreed that edible blue poppies raised solely for poppy seeds are not an opium poppy, nor a plant which is the source of opium or opium products,and that the production of edible blue poppies does nor come within the purport or application of the Opium Poppy Control Act of ;.
Welsh granted a temporary restraining order against the Government, to protect the crops from destruction until the case could be heard. Although the Press generally favoured the Narcotics Bureau, the farmers who had been growing poppies or wanted to do so had considerable influence.
In addition, some state officials, especially of the state Department of Agriculture and the Attorney-General's office, had, from the start, put the state in the position, of favouring poppy cultivation. Under these influences the state legislature made a move which was doubtless intended to help the poppy growers in their case, though actually it could not legally affect what they had already done contrary to existing law, Headlined "Poppy Growing Approved by State Legislature", the news item of 8 June read: "An unanimous vote in the assembly today completed the adoption of a joint resolution by Senators Gordon, Crittenden, and Denel, asking Congress to enact legislation recognizing the importance of blue poppy seed for food uses and permitting its production".
Because of its urgency, it was decided that the case should be heard by a Statutory Emergency Court, consisting of two District Judges, Martin I. Welsh and Louis R. This procedure was adopted in order to get action, promptly, in regard to the existing poppyseed crop-which was ready for the harvest-and to dear the way for a final decision on the constitutionality of the Opium Poppy Control Act. The three-judge Court decided to make its decision primarily from briefs and affidavits, without requiring oral testimony of witnesses.
In the meantime, several hearings were held before the District Judge. On 19 June, the growers made a motion asking that they be permitted to harvest their crop. This was denied. On 7 July they filed a new motion to the same effect. At the hearing on 10 July it was shown that three of the growers had mowed some of their poppies anyway, preparatory to clearing the ground for other crops.
The18 poppy plants were, however, apparently just left lying in the fields at this time. The motion of the growers was again denied and they were strictly ordered not to touch any of the poppies in the field again, until the Court had made a decision.
On 27 July, the attorney for the growers suggested that the crop be harvested and sold and the proceeds impounded, and in the event the litigation resulted unfavourably to the growers that the entire proceeds be turned over to the American Red Cross.
But this offer came too late and was unacceptable anyway, because, for two years past, the recalcitrants had been harvesting poppy-seeds, while those more willing to obey the law, or the wishes of the Narcotics Bureau, had destroyed their plants or given up the cultivation. Extravagant claims were made by the growers that their agricultural poppies produced only insignificant amounts of morphine in the capsules at a late stage of growth; that all poppies produce opium and morphine, including the California poppy Eschscholzia californica , the state flower of California; and that innumerable other agricultural plants produce poisons in some part of the plant or at some stage of growth, so that there was no more reason to prohibit the cultivation of poppies for food purposes than of tomatoes, potatoes, lima beans, rhubarb, lettuce, tapioca, apricots, and cherries!
The analytical results of course showed plainly the amount of morphine in the poppies under attack. To further combat the claims of the growers, an affidavit was prepared by one of the government chemists, part of which will be quoted here:. The basic question, of course, was simply whether or not the Opium Poppy Control Act was constitutional: there was no question but that the poppy growers were violating it.
There is no need to quote the brief for the "defendants"-the United States Attorney and the District Supervisor of Narcotics-as the views of the government attorneys were substantially accepted by the Court. On 28 August , the Court handed down its decision unanimously affirming the constitutionality of the Opium Poppy Control Act. The latter part of the decision will be quoted here:.
The obligations of the United States incurred as a party to the two Conventions heretofore mentioned were lawfully undertaken in the proper exercise of its treaty making power. And Congress is constitutionally empowered to enact whatever legislation is necessary and proper for carrying into execution the treaty making power.
And Congress is constitutionally empowered to enact whatever legislation is necessary and proper for carrying into the treaty-making power of the United States The provisions of the Opium Poppy Control Act express the determination of Congress that effective control of opium production and distribution necessitates legislation limiting the proximate source of yield of the raw opium-the opium poppy-whatever the purpose for which its cultivation is undertaken.
The constitutionality of the measures thus chosen by Congress to give efficacy to the treaty stipulations of the Convention is not dependent upon the wisdom or success of the choice. Nor is it significant that the Conventions contain no stipulation expressly committing the signatory Powers to the obligations of exercising control over the cultivation of the opium poppy.
The power of Congress to enact such legislation as is necessary or proper to carry into execution powers vested by the Constitution in the United States, of which the treaty-making power is one, includes the right to employ any legislative measures appropriately adapted to the effective exercise of those powers So long as a rationally sound basis exists for the congressional determination that particular legislation is appropriately related to the discharge of constitutional powers, the validity of such legislation is unassailable.
The appropriate relationship of the means adopted by Congress to the ends thereby sought to be attained is evident. The opium poppy is the immediate source from which the raw opium is obtained; its cultivation may be undertaken without difficulty, without detection, and for illicit purposes even under the guise of legitimate pretenses; the process of extracting the raw opium from the opium poppy is a simple one; the growth of the opium poppy, wherever undertaken, can reasonably be said to afford attractiveness to those seeking a source of opium supply either for the satisfaction of their own cravings or for the profits offered by the contraband market; and this attractiveness can be expected to increase as suppression of the drug evil becomes progressively more effective and other sources of drug supply become more scarce.
In view of these considerations alone, this Court is fully satisfied with the appropriate relativity of measures limiting the cultivation of the opium, poppy to the objectives of the treaty stipulation to control the production and distribution of raw opium. It was at first thought that the poppy growers might appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States.
It was obvious, however, that their chance of overturning thelaw would be exceedingly small, and, on 6 September , the narcotics officers still observing the situation were informed by the local attorney for the Poppy Growers Association that the growers had decided not to appeal. By 16 September each of the growers had requested permission from the Court to destroy his poppies. The destruction of the poppies was duly carried out, and the indictments against the growers were dropped.
Although not finally prosecuted, their defiance of the law had brought them nothing in the end but heavy expense. A check-up in the following year, , revealed that one of the poppy growers had harvested approximately a ton of poppy-seeds from "volunteer" plants, which had sprung up from the seed scattered in , although the ground had.
The Commissioner of Narcotics wrote, "It is the Bureau's opinion that the grower should be indicted and prosecuted". This was not done but the seed was placed under seizure in September With the usual delays, it was not until 1 March that a libel of seizure was finally filed.
The defendant's attorney now tried to apply a method sometimes used in food and drug cases-that the government should sell the seed, deduct the costs of seizure and sale, and turn the balance of the proceeds over to the grower!
After this was rejected, a default decree of destruction was finally entered, 22 January The quantity was 2, pounds; it analysed By this time his company was purchasing pure imported poppy-seed at 17 cents per pound, and no one had much interest in the matter any longer. Should it be necessary for the United States, in a time of crisis, to produce its own opiates, it is thought that about pounds of poppy-seeds could be obtained per acre, and about pounds of dried capsule chaff.
The minimum area needed, 13, acres, would yield about 7,, pounds of poppy-seed, as compared with normal imports of 6 million to 8 million pounds. More seeds could be used for oil. The requirements of the United States for the two products of the poppy plant could therefore very well be brought into balance, on perhaps 15, to 20, acres, if domestic cultivation should ever be necessary.
The United States, however, has no present intention of entering the field of poppy cultivation. On the contrary, this field was abandoned as a matter of national policy, and commercial poppy cultivation suppressed even during the war: for it is the conviction of the narcotics authorities of the United States that only by striking at the source can the opium evil finally be overcome.
It may be that in some countries the poppy can be grown for seed alone, or for seed and alkaloids, without the danger of narcotic addiction spreading among the popu lation. Certain it is, however, that, in some countries, opium is produced far in excess of legitimate needs. It is the belief of the United States that the only way to conquer the opium evil is by restricting, and, where necessary, completely abolishing, the cultivation of the opium poppy plant itself.
The narcotics authorities of the United States have expressed their satisfaction that the United States can contribute, by its own sacrifice and example, to this end.
United Nations. Office on Drugs and Crime. Site Search. The Pre-war Situation From to , the files of the Narcotics Bureau showed only a scattering of letters regarding the cultivation of the poppy, most of them inquiring what regulations would have to be complied with. Legal Situation when Commercial Cultivation Began The situation changed when commercial production of poppy-seed began, but still no action was taken to register the growers as narcotic producers.
A Case of Narcotic Use of the Capsules In May , a narcotics inspector and a customs officer investigated a report that a Hindu near Holtville, California, was growing the opium poppy. Investigations in The investigation in the summer of showed that most of the poppy growing was in the Santa Maria Valley, not far from the well-known port of San Luis Obispo.
Situation in California in In California, a division of the state government, Drug and Oil Plant Development, was, at this time, urging California farmers to grow the poppy. The state Chief of Narcotics Enforcement explained: "After the enactment of the amendment to the Health and Safety Code of this state, enabling us to issue permits to growers of poppies, I asked the opinion of the Attorney-General of this state as to how far we could go to curtail the planting of these poppies.
It was headed: "AN ACT "To discharge more effectively the obligations of the United States under certain treaties relating to the manufacture and distribution of narcotic drugs, by providing for domestic control of the production and distribution of the opium poppy and its products, and for other purposes.
The Narcotics Bureau replied to inquiries as follows: "The Opium Poppy Control Act, which was recently enacted, permits the licensing of opium poppy production only for the purpose of supplying the medical and scientific needs of the Nation for narcotic drugs. The Granting of State Permits Under date of 6 July , the Commissioner of Narcotics received a letter from the California Chief of the Division of Narcotics Enforcement no longer the same man as the one who had held this office when the cases began , stating: "You may be assured that there will be no further permits issued by this department for the growing of poppies in California, at least until the matter is entirely clarified by your department.
The letter cast doubt on the Federal law: "While the Act may be open to question in some respects as to its validity and applicability to the situation described in your letter, we do not feel that it is necessary at this time to pass on such questions Propaganda for Poppy Cultivation Heretofore the growers had generally conceded that their poppies were opium poppies, i.
One letter to the Vice-President declared: "Men in both the Federal and State Narcotic Bureau personnel have admitted that, under the most favourable conditions conceivable, it would not be possible to extract opium or morphine profitably from the Edible Blue Poppy Seed plants grown in California". Enforcement Measures Taken by the Narcotics Bureau In the beginning the Narcotics Bureau had proceeded largely by suasion, because there was not a firm legal basis for more vigorous action.
In this month the Secretary of the Treasury found it necessary to say, in reply to poppy propaganda sent to the Vice-President: "A great deal of erroneous information to the effect that the poppies grown for seed did not contain opium or morphine was deliberately circulated by persons promoting their growth". He added: "No step should be taken by way of permitting opium poppy production in this country, which would, render our Government's traditional position inconsistent, and give aid and comfort to the enemies of effective international control of narcotic drugs".
How much opium is produced in Afghanistan? What has the Taliban said it will do about opium? What is the Taliban's record?
However, things have since changed. How does the Taliban make money from poppies? Afghanistan: How does the Taliban make money? But some experts dispute this figure. Where do the drugs end up? The routes, volume, and methods for the transshipment of heroin vary between the producing regions. Historically, most of the world's illicit opium for heroin has been grown in the Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia. However, over the last decade, opium production in the Golden Triangle has declined while cultivation and production rates in Southwest Asia have increased considerably.
In , Afghanistan, as the world's largest opium supplier, accounted for nearly 80 percent of the world's opium, according to UN estimates. During the 's, Latin America evolved as the primary supplier of heroin to the United States, with Mexican heroin most prevalent west of the Mississippi and Colombian heroin most prevalent east of it. Since , cultivation and potential opium production in Afghanistan declined for a third consecutive year in a row according to UN and USG estimates.
An increasingly large portion of Afghanistan's raw opium crop is processed into heroin and morphine base by drug labs inside Afghanistan, reducing its bulk by a factor of 10 to 1, and thereby facilitating its movement to markets in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East through Iran, Pakistan, and Central Asia.
In Afghanistan, there is a symbiotic relationship between narco-traffickers and the insurgency, as narcotics traffickers provide revenue and arms to the insurgency, while insurgents provide protection to growers and traffickers to prevent the government from interfering with their activities.
Further, drug-related corruption continues to undercut international reconstruction efforts and good governance, as government officials abuse their positions by benefiting financially from the drug trade.
Opium Cultivation from to Parties There are five readily identifiable groups with interests in the production of opium in Afghanistan: farmers, middlemen traffickers and refiners , insurgents, the Afghan government, and coalition forces. Farmers Farmers, not surprisingly, form the majority of those involved with the opium trade, and being the lowest on the pyramid, are paid the least. Insurgent Groups The Taliban, as well as warlords and various other criminal elements, are known to be involved in the opium trade, and making a handsome profit doing so.
Heroin Production in Afghanistan: Helmand, Nangarhar and Badakhshan Drugs Seized by Kilogram through Opium 2, 17, 50, 40, 39, 37, Heroin 14, 5, 1, 4, 4, Morphine Base 3, Hashish 10, 74, 40, 17, 71, , Precursor Chemicals Seized through Solid kg 14, 3, 24, 30, 37, 65, Liquid liters 0 4, 40, 12, 33, 2, Arrests for Trafficking through Arrests Drug Labs Destroyed through Labs Destroyed 31 78 26 50 94 NATO's Counternarcotics Approach In late , NATO officials announced plans to target drug traffickers and laboratories associated with insurgents for the first time.
Related Information - Header. You May Also Like Afghan Narcotics Terms - Title. Opium Survey - Title. Opium Trade - Title. Laboratory Information Bulletin - Title. Laboratory Kabul Information Bulletin The main purpose of the CNPA laboratory is to undertake the analysis of a variety of seized narcotic drugs including opium, morphine, heroin, cannabis products Laboratory Kabul Information Bulletin The main purpose of this lab is to undertake the analysis of a variety of seized narcotic drugs including Afghanistan's Other Narcotics Nightmare - Title.
Monitoring the Supply of Heroin to Europe - Title. References - Menu. References 1. CCS disclaimer. Material contained herein is made available for the purpose of peer review and discussion and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of the Navy or the Department of Defense. Change Morphine Base. Liquid liters. Labs Destroyed.
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