This document reports on New Zealand drug consumption trends for the year 2021. It brings together the most recent data from a wide array of sources with the hope it will provide a useful baseline for the public, media, health sector and policy makers to debate and develop the solutions to see an Aotearoa free from drug harm.

Key findings:

• Most New Zealanders use alcohol and other drugs, but Māori suffer grossly inequitable outcomes in almost every aspect of this report.
• Alcohol is still by far the most widely consumed drug and causes the most harm, with 19.5% of adults drinking in a way that’s likely to cause them harm.
• Methamphetamine use remains relatively steady, but its impacts on different communities vary greatly. Women living in our poorest neighbourhoods are 18 times more likely to use amphetamines (including methamphetamine) than women living in the wealthiest neighbourhoods, but our one-size-fits-all approach to the drug doesn’t take these differences into account.