Bolivia: Less Than Half Its Coca Goes To Cocaine

LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) – Bolivia’s government has released a study that says 58 percent its coca crop goes to traditional uses while the rest is processed into cocaine.The long-awaited European Union-financed study found that 31 percent of Bolivia’s 10 million people consume coca, a mild stimulant used in religious rituals, chewed and taken in tea.

President Evo Morales is a coca growers’ union chief and his backers have long said Bolivia needs four-fifths of the 25,300 hectares of coca under cultivation in 2012 to meet traditional needs. U.S. officials insist it needs no more than 12,000 hectares. Bolivia is the No. 3 coca producer, following Peru and Colombia. International law enforcement officials say Bolivia has a growing drug trafficking problem, with much of the cocaine processed in its territory originating in Peru.