Before the ban - an exploratory study of a local khat market in East London, U.K

Abstract

BackgroundKhat is a green leaf with amphetamine-like effects. It is primarily used among people in Africa, the Middle East and in the diaspora communities from these countries. Prior to the prohibition of khat in the UK on 24 June 2014, there was almost no information available on key aspects of the local khat market.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in 2012 using snowball sampling, Privileged Access Interviewing and area mapping in order to identify khat sale establishments. Data was collected via face-to-face interviews using mixed methods for data collection. This included information about the establishments selling khat, khat pricing and its use among different ethnic minority groups, in addition to the potential sale of khat to children and risk assessment (e.g. use of pesticides on khat).ResultsFive out of seven sellers identified agreed to participate. Sellers described their khat sale establishments as ‘community centres’ which included, for example, a restaurant basement. The sellers’ history of selling khat ranged between 1–15 years and khat’s sale took place between 2pm-10pm. Miraa (e.g. Lara) from Kenya was the most popularly used khat variety, sold in pre-wrapped bundles of approximately 250 g costing £3 each and delivered four days a week. Harari (e.g. Owdi) from Ethiopia was sold in 200 g, 400 g and 1 kg bundles, priced between £5 and £20 and delivered two days a week. The primary benefit of khat use was reported to be social interaction. The customers were predominantly adult males of Somali origin. Most sellers claimed a self-imposed ban on sales to children under 18 years old. Khat bundles had no labelling describing variety or weight and sellers had no knowledge of the use of pesticides on khat and did not advertise the risks associated with khat use.ConclusionsKhat selling establishments were businesses that did not adhere to trade standards regulations (e.g. labelling khat bundles). They claimed to provide a community service (facilitating social interaction) to their predominately Somali customers. Without a better understanding of the dynamics of the khat market there is a risk that both health and social needs of the vulnerable populations involved in the market continue to go unaddressed. Future research should track changes in the now illicit khat market in order to evaluate the social and public health implications following the recent changes to the current UK regulatory environment regarding khat.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12954-015-0048-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Public discourse on Khat (Catha edulis) production in Ethiopia: Review

“…Khat reduces desire for cohabitation and food, brings confusion, and cause dehydration and spermatorhea (Numan, 2012). Some of the aforementioned associated risks are in agreement with Kassim et al (2015). Chewed leaves negatively affect the working ability and capacity of the users (Kandari et al, 2014).…”

“…Many literatures claimed that East African migrants particularly Somali people uses Khat in United Kingdom and other European countries (Yusuf, 2011). Khat is nonscheduled substance in United Kingdom (Numan, 2012), where it is chewed among Diaspora communities mainly Ethiopians and Southern Arabia for pleasure and social interactions (Anderson and Carrier, 2011;Kassim et al, 2015).…”

“…Perhaps, due to such contents and the taste properties consumers and customers ensure where a Khat comes from. The most popular varieties of Khat in Ethiopia are Aweday and Abo mismar found in Harari that Yemenis prefer (Kassim et al, 2015). The chemical properties of Khat are well documented in some studies.…”

Adverse effects and temporomandibular joint disorder associated with Khat chewing: a prospective study

“…Khat distributors and sellers are also making use of these sentiments while grossly violating the general trade standards and regulations. They justify this abomination by claiming to be providing a community service by creating an environment for social interaction among their customers [14].…”

Consequences of criminalisation: the Dutch khat market before and after the ban

“…The picture of the khat market in the Netherlands that local experts sketched in 2011 (De Jonge & Van der Veen, 2011) was very similar to that in the United Kingdom: mobile khat traders with small businesses and an intricate network of buyers/users (Klein, 2008;Kassim et al, 2015;Patel et al, 2005). As in the United Kingdom (Thomas & Williams, 2013), prior to the ban, there were no clear indications of the involvement of organised crime in the Dutch khat market (Pennings et al, 2008), and supplies of the drug that had arrived at Schiphol airport were distributed several times per week to local traders and users.…”