Main methamphetamine production methods used in Europe from Ephedrine and pseudoephedrine as precursors .
There are many ways to make methamphetamine, and each has its own risks and advantages. In Europe, two main methods exist, classified according to the chemicals used as starting materials, known as precursors. One method is based on ephedrine or pseudoephedrine which can be imported in bulk powder or extracted from medicinal products or even from ephedra plants. This method is hazardous and difficult to scale up; in Europe, it is mostly used in small- to medium-scale ‘kitchen’ laboratories in and around Czechia, where precursors extracted from medicines are typically used. This method produces the potent d-isomer form of methamphetamine ( d -methamphetamine ( 1 ). The other method uses BMK (also called benzyl methyl ketone, or phenyl-2-propanone, ‘P-2-P’), an oil that can be imported to the EU or made in Europe from chemicals known as designer precursors (also called pre-precursors). This method is more amenable to scaling up and is therefore suitable for use in industrial-scale ...
