The number of cannabis users in China increased by more than 25 percent last year, the China National Narcotics Control Commission announced on Monday, according to CNN.
The organization’s deputy director Liu Yuejin blamed the legalization of marijuana in Canada and parts of the United States for the jump in the amount of drugs smuggled into the country, declaring it a "new threat to China."
"In two years, we have found increasing cannabis trafficked from North America to China," Liu said, noting that most of the suspects connected to the illegal parcels were foreign students or students who had come home after working abroad.
China hands out harsh punishment for those caught smuggling or trafficking drugs, with anyone found with more than 50 grams (1.76 ounces) of a controlled substance facing a possible death sentence.
The increase in users has led China to boost its efforts to fight against the sale of illegal drugs in recent years, which is the opposite trend in North America, where cannabis has increasing levels of acceptance.
Meanwhile, the U.S. has been trying for years to get China to crack down on the country's production and distribution of fentanyl, a deadly prescription drug which is wreaking havoc among parts of the US and linked to one in four overdose deaths in the country last year, according to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
After pressure from the U.S. administration, Beijing announced in April that it would crack down on fentanyl-related substances.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.