An estimated 375 tons of heroin is produced and trafficked out of Afghanistan each year. Counter-narcotics officials in the country are able to stop around 3.5 percent of heroin from leaving the country, or about 12 tons.
In May 2012, the price for a kilogram of opium was over $320, an increase of 50 percent from the month before.
According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the total value of the opium industry in Afghanistan was $2.4 Billion in 2011. The value of heroin globally is estimated to be worth $68 Billion.
(How much does heroin cost around the world.)
Source: Alissa Rubin and Matthew Rosenberg, “U.S. Efforts Fail to Curtail Trade in Afghan Opium,” New York Times, May 26, 2012.