The Consolidation of Tusi and its History in Colombia
By Mauro Díaz y Julián Quintero de Échele Cabeza - ATS (Colombia).
Although cocaine remains the main driver of the illegal economy in Colombia, new psychoactive substances (NPS) are gaining popularity, not only among drug users but also as export products. This is the case with the pink powder known as tusi. In recent years, this name has circulated in various media outlets both in Colombia and other countries, but the information presented does not always match the evidence provided by substance analysis services. For this reason, this text presents the findings of the Échele Cabeza substance analysis service located in Colombia, which, using colorimetric reagent testing, thin-layer chromatography (TLC), and GC/MS, has identified the composition of tusi over time. Additionally, information on tusi consumption practices is provided, thanks to peer-led work.
In the long history of the war on drugs, Colombia has played a leading role as the largest producer of cocaine and as a victim of the violence generated by the fight against drug trafficking. Despite all the political and economic support from the United States to attack criminal structures, the illegal market constantly evolves to maintain its exorbitant profits. During the four decades of cocaine production in Colombia, organized crime has demonstrated its ability to adapt to conditions defined by prohibitionism. The illegal market survived the downfall of the major drug lords of the 1980s and 1990s, and over the last 20 years, production has continued to thrive. At the same time, innovations in cultivation techniques, alkaloid extraction, and improved smuggling methods have sustained the trafficking of drugs from the jungle to the luxurious locations of the global north.
However, the illegal drug market in Colombia is not limited to cocaine. Recent consumption studies conducted by government entities have shown an increase in the presence of synthetic drugs like ecstasy, LSD, methamphetamine, ketamine and 2C-B, among others. But these studies lack updated information on consumption practices and the composition of psychoactive substances, particularly due to the confusion between the psychedelic 2C-B and a cocktail of substances called tusi.
The history of tusi can be traced back to Colombia around 2012 when a media outlet highlighted the growing preference of a privileged class of users for synthetic substances, specifically 2C-B. After that report, curiosity about the "new" drug grew, but demand outstripped supply. Thus, due to market dynamics, a pink powder appeared, emulating 2C-B, and became known as "tusibí." This name is derived from the phonetic English translation of 2C-B and is now commonly shortened to tusi.
In 2015, our analysis service began receiving samples of a pink powder that users identified as 2C-B. The limitations of colorimetric analyses only allowed for the identification of ketamine and MDMA, which helped explain the effects described by users since the combination of these substances produces a different effect than a psychedelic like 2C-B or the "pink cocaine" that some people claimed to have.
One of the characteristics of tusi from the beginning is its aroma and flavor, provided by food additives. Watermelon, strawberry, grape, and coffee are some of the many flavors that help mask the bitterness of MDMA. These sensations, along with its effects, distinguish tusi from cocaine and are key to understanding the preferences of a new generation of drug users.
In this new market, the packaging of tusi is also important. Unlike the small transparent bags used to sell cocaine on the streets of Colombia, tusi can be found in bright gold or silver bags, sometimes even with psychedelic cartoon stickers. This makes tusi an attractive product. Additionally, the pink color has gradually ceased to be the only one, with powders in blue, purple, orange, and yellow emerging, giving rise to the myth that color determines effects and potency.
Everything seems to be designed for a generation inheriting Colombia's narcoculture, a generation unafraid to talk about drugs. Instead, they embrace their consumption and celebrate it through music, particularly reggaeton and the Colombian variation of Latin tribal house known as "guaracha." An example of this is a viral audio clip in Colombia from 2017 that mentioned the words "guaro, perico, popper, tusi, and sex." These words captured the context of tusi consumption: parties. By this point, tusi was no longer an elite drug, as mentioned initially, but had become more popular. Culturally, it positioned itself as the drug of the new generation of Colombian youth: "Old people use cocaine, young people use tusi," and it is also part of the "sex tourism combo" that has taken over cities like Medellín and Cartagena in Colombia.
By 2019, in collaboration with the Colombia Drug Observatory of the Ministry of Justice, an early warning was issued, noting that 2C-B contained ketamine, MDMA, and caffeine, the latter being undetectable with colorimetric analysis, making it a novelty at the time. Later, GC/MS analysis of 162 samples collected in 2019 detected MDMA, MDA, amphetamine, methamphetamine, N-ethylpentylone, cocaine, caffeine; psychedelics like 2C-B and DOB; local anesthetics such as bupivacaine, phenacetin, and lidocaine; opioids like tramadol and oxycodone; and other medications like carbamazepine, sertraline, paracetamol, and metronidazole.
In 2020, at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, changes in drug consumption in Colombia were recorded. Substances like cocaine and ecstasy were less preferred as parties, concerts, and other nighttime events were restricted due to lockdowns. The environment was conducive to the emergence of an underground electronic music scene that evaded health controls and attracted an eager audience between 2021 and 2022. By that time, users had already understood the difference between tusi and 2C-B, leading the analysis service to collect data differently and provide specific harm reduction information.
In 2021, tusi was the third most analyzed substance after MDMA and LSD. While in 2012, a gram of tusi cost 280,000 pesos (70 USD), by the end of 2021, it could be found for less than 40,000 pesos (10 USD). It was also observed that 72.6% of users who brought tusi samples were under 30 years old, compared to 49.3% for cocaine. Additionally, 18.1% of people reported using it once a month, 19.0% more than once a month, and 21.0% once a week. All this shows a preference among young people for frequent use, who also reported polydrug use practices with poppers, ecstasy, cannabis, nicotine, and alcohol.
In another study with GC/MS analysis, this time on 25 samples collected in 2022, it was found that 96% contained ketamine and caffeine, and 88% contained MDMA; these three substances continued to be the main components. Additionally, substances such as paracetamol, cocaine, methamphetamine, oxycodone, phenacetin, levamisole, N,N-dimethylpentylone, levamisole, alprazolam, and clonazepam were also detected. In this case, benzodiazepines appeared, but more data was needed to establish a trend.
In 2023, 100 tusi samples were analyzed with TLC, and 18 mixtures of substances were identified, giving an idea of the variable composition of tusi. However, TLC does not allow for the identification of all detected substances, nor does it allow for concentration determination. Likewise, TLC does not detect benzodiazepines under the analysis conditions used. Other rapid analysis techniques, such as test strips, are needed for this.
In 2023, with the expansion of fentanyl in the United States, national media sensationalized the presence of this opioid in Colombia. In response, the analysis service incorporated the use of fentanyl test strips to analyze tusi samples and simultaneously used benzodiazepine test strips to detect them at low concentrations. A total of 264 tusi samples were analyzed, and no fentanyl was detected in any of them. However, 205 samples were tested with benzodiazepine strips, and 20.8% were positive.
More recently, from January to June 2024, 319 tusi samples were tested with fentanyl strips, and none were positive. Meanwhile, 186 samples were tested with benzodiazepine strips, and 44.6% were positive. This represents a 23.8% increase from the previous year. This could indicate a trend of a new component to watch, given that the party context, combined with alcohol and ketamine in the same tusi, can lead to risky situations for users, such as central nervous system depression.
Now, given that ketamine and MDMA have historically been the most common components in tusi, and considering the possibility of countless mixtures, how much can the composition vary in other parts of the world? Will ketamine be as widely used in other countries?
When the United Nations initiated the drug control system in 1961, cocaine, marijuana, and heroin were listed for control, leading to the prohibition of their production, commercialization, and use. A decade later, in 1971, other substances that emerged as society transformed, such as synthetic psychedelics, amphetamines, and benzodiazepines, were listed. However, the potential to evade controls through chemical synthesis is so great that the UN created another category called New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) to include any substance considered potentially harmful. As of November 2023, 1,230 of these NPS were registered.
Now, not all NPS are truly new. For example, ketamine was synthesized in 1960, but its use has grown since the 1990s. According to the 2024 World Drug Report, "global ketamine seizures reached a record level in 2022, with a 70% increase compared to 2021 in East and Southeast Asia, with notable increases in other subregions as well." Similarly, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC), through wastewater analysis, recorded an increase in ketamine consumption in several Australian cities. Additionally, in 2022, the CanTest substance analysis service detected a new ketamine analog, which they called “CanKet” (Canberra ketamine). Likewise, in 2024, the UNODC reported an increase in seizures of ketamine analogs in different countries such as China, South Korea, and New Zealand.
Although the above data show an increase in ketamine use worldwide, they do not provide insight into consumption practices. On the other hand, in 2022, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported the presence of ketamine in various drug mixtures in Myanmar, Singapore, and Thailand. For example, "happy water," which contains caffeine, MDMA, and cathinones, or "k-powdered milk," which contains diazepam and caffeine. The report also mentions that in Latin America, North America, and Europe, a mixture of ketamine with other substances known as tusi has been recorded.
Tusi has been reported in different countries both by drug checking services and by judicial authorities that have targeted criminal networks involved in trafficking networks from Colombia. This indicates a drastic change in the illegal market since the production of tusi does not require large areas of cultivation or the construction of laboratories in the jungle. The production of drugs has shifted to urban environments, where it is done on a smaller scale, using ingredients more readily available than the chemical precursors needed for cocaine production, making it harder for authorities to track.
Beyond a powder containing psychoactive substances, tusi is a product that the unregulated market has positioned with its exotic touch of flavors, colors, and sensations. However, the consumption of a powder marketed as pink cocaine or 2C-B complicates the collection of consumption data because people do not know exactly what it contains. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze and disseminate more information about tusi in different parts of the world. It is possible that Colombia's history may repeat itself in other countries where tusi begins as an exclusive drug and then becomes a mixture of NPS that, depending on the region of the world where it is produced, may lead to more severe risks than we currently know.
Mauro Díaz is a chemist and Master in Chemical Sciences. Director of the Drug Checking Service of the Échele Cabeza, project of the Corporación Acción Técnica Social (ATS) in Colombia.
Julián Quintero is a sociologist with a Master's degree in Social Studies of Science and Technology. Director of the Corporación Acción Técnica Social (ATS) in Colombia.
