In 2025, a total of 1,731 samples declared as cocaine were submitted for analysis at the Zurich Drug Information Center (DIZ) and at mobile drug testing sites. Of these samples, 1,602 were submitted through outpatient drug testing, 78 through the nine mobile party drug testing events, and 51 through the four mobile K&A drug testing events.
The average cocaine content of the samples analyzed at the DIZ and during mobile drug testing in 2025 was 87.3% cocaine*HCl. Compared to the previous year, there was a 5.5% increase in the average active ingredient content.
Nine out of ten samples analyzed contained cocaine levels ranging from 80.1% to 100%.
In 2025, 14.6% of samples declared as cocaine contained at least one pharmacologically active substance in addition to cocaine. This represents a significant decrease in the proportion of unexpected substances compared to the previous year. With the exception of 2024, this is consistent with the long-term trend of a decline in unexpected pharmacologically active substances in cocaine samples.
Over the past 10 years, levamisole has been the most common unexpected pharmacologically active substance found in cocaine samples. The number of samples adulterated with levamisole declined steadily during this period (with a slight increase in 2020). In 2025, levamisole was detected in 4.3% of cocaine samples. This represents another significant decline from the previous year.
In 2024, local anesthetics were the most frequently detected unexpected pharmacologically active substances for the first time. In 2025, as in the previous year, the local anesthetic procaine was the most frequently detected unexpected substance. Procaine was detected in 6.0% of all cocaine samples. This represents a decrease of 15.3%.
The detailed 2025 cocaine analysis can be found in the attached report. These are the key findings from 2024:
– In 2025, the average cocaine purity at the DIZ reached a record high of 87.3%. This continues a long-standing trend (following a slight decline in 2024). This trend is evident across Europe and is attributable to record-high production volumes in the countries of origin.
– Consequently, the number of samples containing an unexpected pharmacologically active substance (“cutter”) reached a record low in 2025. While one in two samples still contained unexpected substances in 2016, by 2025 they were found in only one in seven samples.
– As in the previous year, procaine was the most common unexpected pharmacologically active substance found in cocaine samples in 2025. However, its prevalence declined significantly: the percentage is now only one-third of what it was in 2024.
– Cocaine is a substance with a high potential for harm and addiction. The trend toward cocaine containing fewer and fewer cutting agents should in no way lead to the conclusion that its use is safe.
– If users do not know the active ingredient content of the cocaine they have purchased, they can hardly reduce the risks associated with its use. Therefore, it is advisable to use drug testing whenever possible.
Further information on cocaine can be found on our website here. The results published here are not representative of the substance market in the city of Zurich.
