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History of Heroin Production

Heroin is another drug that has its roots firmly in the annals of history, with proof showing up all over the world that opium poppies were cultivated for thousands of years to be harvested, consumed or smoked, by many empires, kingdoms and countries throughout time - there have even been wars fought over the opium trade.

It wasn’t until the 19th century, however, that heroin itself was processed from opium poppies by a British chemist - C.R. Alder Wright. While he is acknowledged as discovering the drug and a colleague of his - F.M. Pierce - ran tests using heroin on animals to see its effects, wide use of the drug did not come about until later in the 19th century, around 1898. A German chemist, Felix Hoffman, managed to produce heroin apparently by accident, after attempting to create codeine from an opium poppy. The discovery lead to the newly dubbed 'heroin' (after the German word 'heroisch', meaning 'heroic' - the way it made users feel) being marketed internationally as a non-addictive medicine (and substitute for morphine) for treating pain sufferers, as well as a children's cough medicine.

The discovery that heroin actually metabolised into morphine in the liver set the wheels in motion for the banning of the substance worldwide, though these bans didn't come into effect in certain places for quite a while. The USA allowed sale of heroin for medicinal purposes until 1924, whereas the UK didn't put serious consideration into outlawing the drug until the mid 20th century - even though it was already commonly accepted as highly addictive and damaging to people.

While the US saw heroin as a dangerous drug that needed to be controlled and outlawed, the UK saw opposition from many professional medics, who saw heroin as a successful treatment for many ailments - the media of the day didn't help matters, indicating only a handful of addicts in the country and skirting over the issue of the more recreational users. Bans were implemented at the beginning of the 1950s on the manufacture, import and sale of heroin throughout the UK, but it still took many years for the drug to be outlawed completely - thanks in no small part to intense opposition from doctors and other medical practitioners.

Today heroin is illegal in all but the most anarchic of states, and carries with it huge penalties for possession, use and trafficking.