Gardaí combat surge in drug growing

Gardaí are fighting a national surge in large-scale production of homegrown drugs worth millions of euro annually.

New figures show that gardaí seized tens of thousands of cannabis plants in almost 600 operations last year.

Senior officers believe criminal gangs are behind an explosion in the cultivation of the drug. Senior gardaí have also expressed concern about the number of criminals involved in so-called grow houses around the country, usually in remote places to avoid detection.