Afghanistan Opium Crop Sets Record

Afghanistan Opium Crop Sets Record
U.S.-Backed Efforts At Eradication Fail
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/01/AR2006120101654.html

By Karen DeYoung
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, December 2, 2006; Page A01

Opium production in Afghanistan, which provides more than 90 percent of the world's heroin, broke all records in 2006, reaching a historic high despite ongoing U.S.-sponsored eradication efforts, the Bush administration reported yesterday.

In addition to a 26 percent production increase over past year -- for a total of 5,644 metric tons -- the amount of land under cultivation in opium poppies grew by 61 percent. Cultivation in the two main production provinces, Helmand in the southwest and Oruzgan in central Afghanistan, was up by 132 percent.

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