New synthetic opioids are rapidly reshaping illicit drug markets and fuelling public health crises globally. While Australia has not experienced an opioid crisis like that of the United States or parts of Europe, it hasn't been immune to the emergence of novel synthetic opioids (NSOs).

The most prominent NSOs detected in Australia are nitazenes, a class of synthetic opioids which dramatically vary in potency. While some are comparable in strength to fentanyl, others can be significantly more potent and up to 500 times stronger than heroin. 

They have been implicated in at least 33 fatal overdoses nationwide, 24 of which occurred in Victoria.

Nitazenes and other NSOs are rarely bought and sold in Australia under their real names. Instead, they have been found in drugs like cocaine, MDMA and ketamine, where they are likely accidental contaminants.

This often occurs because chemists operating unregulated clandestine laboratories do not adhere to strict chemical control procedures. As a result, cross-contamination and manufacturing errors are a leading cause of NSO detections in stimulants, dissociatives, and other substances.

They have also appeared in opioids like heroin, where they are more likely to have been deliberately added as adulterants to increase potency.

Associate Professor Jennifer Schumann, the Head of the Drug Intelligence Unit at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, told Farrago that, “the majority of our synthetic opioid detections have been detected in people who thought that they were using non-opioid substances”.

Even among opioid users, the emergence of NSOs globally has increased the risks of fatal overdose due to their incredibly high potency.

Although detections of nitazenes and other NSOs remain relatively sporadic in Australia, experts caution that the current situation may not remain stable as synthetic drugs are becoming increasingly globalised.

Speaking with Farrago, drug policy specialist Associate Professor Monica Barratt at the National Drug Research Institute, made it clear that predicting how NSOs are going to continue to impact Australia is incredibly difficult and it is uncertain whether things will worsen.

Still, Dr Barratt questioned whether Australia is ready for a potential outbreak:

“If things were to change… and we find for a number of different reasons, a whole heap of new potent synthetic opioids arrive on our shores, will we be prepared?”

Old “New” Opioids

Despite nitazenes and other NSOs being described as emerging threats, many of them were synthesised last century, decades before appearing in contemporary illicit markets. 

Fentanyl and nitazenes were developed in the late 1950s, but only fentanyl was approved for medical use, as nitazenes were considered too dangerous.

Unlike semi-synthetic opioids such as heroin and oxycodone, these NSOs are produced entirely through chemical synthesis rather than being derived from naturally occurring opiates.

Since the mid-20^th century, fentanyl has played an important role in medicine, and more recently, a devastating role in the illicit drug trade. Nitazenes, on the other hand, never sustained a presence in the global drug market—aside from isolated detections in Europe, Russia and the US.

For decades, nitazenes remained little more than obscure anecdotes and entries in pharmaceutical literature that had been long forgotten. It wasn't until international regulations were imposed on fentanyl that nitazenes became a key element of the world's contemporary illicit drug trade.

North America’s Fentanyl Crisis 

The on-going North American fentanyl crisis started in 2013. Since then, the world has watched as one specific NSO has resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths. It was originally used to strengthen heroin but eventually became the prominent opioid of choice for many users. 

Companies located mostly in China manufactured the majority of the fentanyl that was used in the US. Following sustained pressure from US administrations, the Chinese government eventually banned all fentanyl-related substances in 2019. 

It’s important to note that chemical producers are continuing to send fentanyl precursors to organised crime groups in Mexico, which is now the largest synthesiser and source of fentanyl for the US. Subsequently, while some disruptions have occurred to the fentanyl market, it still remains one of the most common NSOs across illicit markets.

As fentanyl became more difficult to produce on a mass scale, international chemical producers turned to decade-old pharmaceutical literature in search of alternative compounds. Nitazenes were among them. 

As chemists began diversifying and adapting their production to evade newly restrictive legislation on fentanyl; nitazenes reemerged within illicit drug markets in a capacity that has increased exponentially by way of quantity and geography. 

Since their return in 2019, nitazenes have been detected in 37 countries, with Australia recording its first detection in 2021.

Reports suggest they are now one of the most prevalent NSOs detected globally.

Australian Federal Police have reported at least 47 nitazene seizures since July 2023, across multiple drug categories and jurisdictions. 

Notably, these detections are comparatively low to other countries and other drug detections domestically. Nonetheless, they represent how international factors impact the Australian drug market.

The Globalisation of Drugs

One potential factor that may further increase the presence of NSOs in Australia is the indirect impacts of legislation recently passed by the Taliban.

For decades Afghanistan has been responsible for up to 80 per cent of the world’s opium production—that was until the Taliban outlawed all drug cultivation in 2021. Whilst existing stockpiles of heroin have sustained markets internationally, estimates suggest that they will likely run out at the end of 2026. 

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reports that global heroin seizures have fallen by more than half compared with pre-2021 levels. As heroin becomes scarcer, the UNODC warns criminal organisations may increasingly turn to synthetic opioids, making the emergence of new NSOs around the world a potential indicator of a broader shift.

There are multiple factors that make NSOs appealing for these criminal organisations.

They, unlike heroin, do not require opium cultivation and can be manufactured anywhere with access to comparatively cheap precursor chemicals. Their extreme potency also means that relatively small quantities can be transported and concealed easier than plant-based drugs.

Somewhat fortunately, Australia is currently more isolated than Europe and North America from Afghani heroin shortages, as South-East Asia is Australia’s key heroin supplier. However, a more general shift globally toward synthetic alternatives could increase the level in which deadly NSOs appear in Australia.

The possibility of contamination, adulteration and direct importation inadvertently increases for Australia as synthetic opioids become more permanent elements of the global illicit drug trade. 

Dr Barratt pointed out that “even though it's not happening all around us right now, it's possible.”

Online Marketplaces

The intersection between NSO availability and online marketplaces adds an additional layer of complexity for governments attempting to regulate these substances internationally.

China banned all nitazenes in 2025, and while there have been indications that their availability has marginally reduced, they are still accessible to buy across dark and surface online markets with vendors located across the globe. 

Dr Nicola Man, a biostatistician at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, explained to Farrago that even regularly accessible surface web shops, purported to be originating from Asia, are still vending nitazenes. 

Farrago found multiple advertisements for isotonitazene on publicly accessible websites offering delivery to Australia. Isotonitazene is a synthetic opioid approximately 500 times more potent than morphine. Sourced 9 July 2026.

Etodesnitazene available for shipping to Australia. Sourced 9th of July 2026.

Due to the relative ease of synthesising NSOs, it is difficult for countries to regulate them through law enforcement. For example, Isonitazine was scheduled by China in 2021, however, reports across both surface and dark websites showed that its availability grew in the years following. 

Dr Man explained that this example shows that “the market can often pivot in such ways as to make the drug still be available in spite of regulations and law enforcement.”

Furthermore, China's 2025 scheduling of nitazenes has prompted some manufacturers to diversify production once again. Detections of orphine analogues—a newly emerging class of NSOs—have been increasing globally.

An Uncertain Future

Dr Schumann warned that across Australia, “every state [and territory] needs a potent synthetic opioid response plan that's ready to kick into gear, because it could happen tomorrow—we just don't know.”

To effectively respond to NSOs, experts across Australia’s public health systems highlighted the importance of continuing to develop the country's multi-layered protection mechanisms.

Currently, only the ACT and Victoria have fixed drug testing services. Sites such as the Victorian Pill Testing Service in Fitzroy allow people to anonymously test substances for free. 

Researchers and frontline workers told Farrago that expanding these services nationally—including in regional and remote communities—would strengthen Australia's ability to detect emerging drug threats.

Furthermore, issues with lagging coronial data are impeding researchers' ability to triangulate drug-checking data with detailed reports from fatal overdoses.

Dr Schumann explained, “When we're looking at emerging drug problems, and we've got new drugs popping up every couple of months, looking at data that's two years old is almost redundant for a drug market that's changing so quickly.”

Alongside improved monitoring, naloxone is an important and existing safeguard against opioid overdoses. As of June 2026, Victoria has introduced free naloxone vending machines across the state, providing public access to a medication that can rapidly reverse opioid overdoses. Naloxone is also available free of charge through participating pharmacies.

As Australia prepares for the possibility of a synthetic opioid crisis, Dr Schumann stressed that harm reduction is not only the responsibility of governments and health services but also extends to all individuals who use recreational substances. 

“You don't just carry naloxone if you use opioids, you carry naloxone if you use any illicit drugs, because there's so much adulteration of the market, you just don't know what you're going to get,” she said.

The dangers posed by NSOs extends beyond their potency. It is also their sinister ability to remain hidden among completely unrelated drugs, placing a large subset of Australian society at risk. 

Image Source: NSW Health Pathology