Keep in mind that for the most part we are looking at economy-based labs; those are the labs that have a high yield. What we are looking at is organized crime, which is behind them. They are well aware of what our legislation is and of our investigative capacities. The way they are set up, we are seeing some instances where the tasks are being split amongst the members of the organization. Whereas some individuals are there to collect the precursors and stash them for long periods of time, other individuals have their own roles. Because we have this breakdown of roles, these investigations become very protracted. The breakdown is meant purposely to counter what law enforcement can do.
It is not uncommon for us to hear or understand through the evidence that the precursors and the material were stashed for a significant period of time to purposely deter or counter law enforcement. Those are some of the realities we face.
The production of chemical drugs is an opportunity for organized crime. There is a demand on the street. Methamphetamine has been recognized as a highly addictive drug by some organizations. The demand is there, and as per the 2006 drug situation report, which was recently released, we have unfortunately moved from being a consumer nation to being a producer and an exporting nation.