The cost of opium

On this episode of The Cost of Everything we take a closer look at the opium market and how its production ban in certain countries has prompted a dangerous synthetic illegal market. Host Christy Ai speaks with Professor Zaher Wahab to explore what happened to the opium industry in Afghanistan after a cultivation ban took effect, and how it has affected the local farmers' income, how dependent Big Pharma is on the poppy plant, and how other Asian countries have tried to supply the market. Plus, we take a look at the growing illegal trade of opium in Central Asia.