Smaller Meth Labs On The Rise

Methamphetamine labs are on the rise in North Carolina. That's according to state officials who say drug makers are finding new ways to produce it. The number of meth labs had dropped dramatically in 2007, when state lawmakers passed a bill limiting sales of decongestant medicines containing pseudoephedrine. That's a key ingredient in methamphetamine.

Attorney General Roy Cooper says meth producers are now making the drug in smaller batches to get around the law and avoid detection:

 "Most of the increase is attributable to what is called the "one-pot" or "shake-and-bake" method of making methamphetamine. It's usually just in a two-liter bottle and it makes one or two doses."

Those cases account for more than half of the meth labs found in the last year. The number of labs hasn't returned to its recent high of 2005, but Cooper says he wants to continue training officers to identify meth labs and keep an eye on pseudoephedrine sales in North Carolina.