Speaking at the Patrida opioid addiction clinic in Berlin, Federal Drug Commissioner Hendrik Streeck announced the latest figures on the number of drug-related deaths in Germany.
Streeck said he was saddened to have to announce the figures, which, he said, had become something of an annual ritual. He also spoke of his shock at the rising number of young victims.
In 2025, 2,150 people died as a result of taking drugs, up from 2,137 in 2024 and just under the all-time high of 2,227 recorded deaths in 2023. Roughly one in four were under 30 (528), up 53% from 2021, and 106 were under 20, almost double the number in 2021. The victims were on average 40.6 years old.Federal Drug Commissioner Streeck addresses reporters with patients at Berlin's Patrida clinic in backgroundImage: Helen Whittle/DW
"Many of these young people are not yet able to fully grasp the risks," he said. Streeck, a physician and member of the Bundestag for the center-right Christian Democrats, cited psychological stress and crises as possible factors for drug use by for young people, but also curiosity and recklessness.
According to the latest figures, 81.5% of deaths were connected to mixing substances. There has also been a 110.7% increase in the number of crack- and cocaine-related deaths since 2021.
