Meow update 2: more UK tabloid exposure for 'Mephedrone Menace'

As predicted, the UK tabloid press has finally picked up on the Mephedrone phenomenon.

Following hot on the heels of The Sun, this time it's the Daily Mail running an exposé on the widely-available, cheap, legal drug that some users have hailed as the 'saviour of clubland' in the UK.

In his article in the Mail, Paul Brachi investigates a website which provides deliveries of Mephedrone in the London area by courier until 3am. Curiously, in one of the photos accompanying the article, the website address (http://www.plantfood2u.com/) is clearly visible on a label on a bag of Mephedrone, thereby providing the company with massive free publicity.

For those unfamiliar with the Daily Mail, the stories it runs are considered some of the more sensationalist in the British press. That said, Narcotrends found this particular piece to be reasonably balanced and fairly well researched, with the exception of this marvellous explanation of how the 'meow meow' street name for Mephedrone arose:

"Mephedrone is often combined with Ketamine, a horse tranquilliser, which helps to relax you after the Mephedrone high. The street name 'meow meow' derives from the fact Ketamine is sometimes called Ket. Ket sounds like cat (as in meow meow)."

Indeed.

Narcotrends would timidly suggest that perhaps the abbreviated chemical name 'mmcat' (4-methylmethcathinone) might be a more likely source of the nickname.

Despite occasional lapses into scare-mongering, the article does a surprisingly good job of highlighting the growing use of Mephedrone in the UK and the lack of any legal framework to control it.

Read more at the Daily Mail