A New Zealand drug testing agency is urging Kiwis to get their substances checked as “dodgy” LSD tabs circulate containing extra-potent psychedelic stimulants, which have led to deaths overseas.

Know Your Stuff NZ general manager Casey Spearin told the Herald a dangerous analogue for LSD, the third most common drug the agency tests, had been doing the rounds.

Casey Spearin from Know Your Stuff NZ.

“There have been some dodgy tabs going around recently that don’t have LSD but have N-Bombs [NBOMe], or NBOH style of drugs, and those are psychedelic/stimulant that is pretty dangerous actually. The dosage again is much lower than LSD actually is and has led to a number of deaths worldwide.”

Deaths in the United Kingdom, United States, and Australia have been linked to N-bombs, including Sydney 17-year-old Henry Kwan who jumped off a balcony to his death because he thought he could fly.

In New Zealand, five people were hospitalised in Christchurch in 2015 after consuming N-bombs, one of whom was a 20-year-old left in critical condition in ICU with multiple organ failure.

Spearin said NBOMe drugs have a particular taste and people often use the adage, “if it’s bitter it’s a spitter”.

As well as that, Spearin said they were still finding cathinones, also known as bath salts, being substituted for MDMA in Aotearoa.

A New Zealand drug testing agency is urging Kiwis to get their substances checked as “dodgy” LSD tabs circulate containing extra-potent psychedelic stimulants, which have led to deaths overseas. Photo / Supplied

“Probably the most common one being eutylone. Now, this is much better than previous years, I think it’s about one in 30 MDMA samples that has eutylone in it this year.”

Spearin told the Herald eutylone was a stimulant like MDMA but did not give the same “euphoria” as MDMA, and the dosage was lower – about a third of the amount someone would take of MDMA.

Because it didn’t produce the same euphoria, Spearin said it wore off after about 45 minutes or an hour, so people would then re-dose.

“Eutylone will keep you awake for two, three days at a time so people will find themselves unable to sleep and in the most extreme cases can go into psychosis.”

MDMA is expected to remain the most popular substance over the summer, but the agency has also seen a “massive increase” in the number of cocaine samples coming in. Last summer they tested about 20 samples of cocaine in total and this year she said they’re close to 200 already.

Despite the fact these drugs are illegal, 49 per cent of the adult population has used recreational drugs at some point in their lives, the New Zealand Drug Foundation says. Many of those were likely at a music festival.

New Zealand changed the Misuse of Drugs Act at the end of 2020 to legalise drug-checking services — becoming the first country in the world to do so.

Now, Know Your Stuff NZ is in such high demand that it has more than doubled its testing equipment — increasing from five infrared spectrometers to 12 — and recruited more than 900 volunteers.

How does drug testing work?

Know Your Stuff NZ will take a small sample from your substance to test it.

Testing substances with Know Your Stuff requires sitting down with a Know Your Stuff NZ representative and providing one to two piles of the drug you would like to be checked. The first is a matchhead size pile to check for re-agents and the second pile is slightly bigger and is used for the FTIR spectrometer test. The second test is not always required.

Once your substance has been tested, you will be told what’s in the substance, given harm reduction advice and if for any reason you choose you don’t want to use the substance after it has been tested, the organisation can safely dispose of it for you.

Where to find a Know Your Stuff testing station this summer

Festivals

Northern Base - Mangawhai

Twisted Frequency - Golden Bay

Aum - South Head

Welcome to Nowhere - Manawatū

Dimension - Northland

Sound Splash - Raglan

Splore - Tapapakanga

Note: NZ Drug Foundation will be offering drug testing at Rhythm and Vines in Gisborne.

Pop up clinics

December 27: Queenstown Memorial Centre, open 4pm-6.30pm.

December 28: Lake Wānaka Centre, open 4pm-6.30pm.

Contact regional manager [email protected], for queries about testing at these clinics.

Permanent clinics

North Island: Auckland, Waikato, Rotorua, Hamilton, Tauranga, Mt Maunganui, Raglan, Whanganui and Wellington.

South Island: Christchurch, Timaru, Dunedin and Invercargill.

For more information about Know Your Stuff NZ and where to find a free drug testing clinic near you, click here.

Katie Harris is an Auckland-based journalist who covers social issues including sexual assault, workplace misconduct, crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2020.