Summary: "The annual U.S. government estimate for Burma?s opium production showed that poppy cultivation increased 4 percent to 22,500 ha in 2008 from 21,700 ha in 2007. The U.S. survey found that potential opium production increased 26 percent to 340 metric tons, sufficient to produce 32 metric tons of pure heroin. Ninety-four percent of poppy was grown in Shan State, with limited cultivation observed in Kachin State. A significant downward trend in poppy cultivation observed in Burma since 1998 was reversed in 2007. Preliminary results from ?off-season” UNODC surveys of poppy cultivation and production in Burma indicate growers are producing crops during periods not previously associated with poppy cultivation, perhaps to avoid government eradication efforts. The Government of Burma (GOB) made significant steps in poppy eradication efforts over the last decade, a period during which Burma sunk to a distant second after Afghanistan, in world poppy cultivation rankings, but it would seem the direction of cultivation and production have reversed in response to very high regional opium prices in Southeast Asia. Opium farmers are also reportedly taking advantage of efficiencies provided by improved inputs (fertilizer and irrigation systems) to increase yields. The GOB has not provided most opium farmers with access to alternative development opportunities, though UN and other international programs have had some impact. Production and export of synthetic drugs (amphetamine-type stimulants, crystal methamphetamine and Ketamine) from Burma continue unabated. Despite Burma?s overall decline in poppy cultivation since 1998 a dramatic surge has taken place in the production and export of synthetic drugs. The Golden Triangle, where the borders of Burma, Thailand and Laos converge on the Mekong River, is now dotted with drug labs producing synthetic drugs for the Asian market and beyond. Burma is a significant player in the manufacture and regional trafficking of amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS). Drug gangs based in the Burma-China and Burma-Thailand border areas, many of whose members are ethnic Chinese criminals, produce several hundred million methamphetamine tablets annually for markets in Thailand, China, and India, as well as for onward distribution beyond the region. There are also indications that groups in Burma have increased the production and trafficking of crystal methamphetamine, known as ?Ice.”..."