Pill testing trial to be held at Spilt Milk

THE State Government’s pill testing trial is continuing across summer with the service to be offered at Spilt Milk music festival in Ballarat on Saturday 6 December.

The free, confidential service is staffed by experts who provide information designed to keep people safe and help them make informed decisions.

A range of drugs can be tested and if a high-risk substance is detected, the service works with organisers to quickly warn attendees.

Last summer, pill testing took place at five festivals and of the nearly 1400 samples tested, 11 per cent were not the drug expected.

“The results from last festival season speak for themselves: pill testing works,” Minister for Mental Health Ingrid Stitt said.

“It doesn’t encourage young people to use drugs but allows them to see what’s really in their substances and make informed health decisions.

“With a rise in dangerous synthetic opioids, this service is more important than ever. It offers a sensible health-led approach to reduce drug harms, while also delivering critical drug surveillance information.”

Last year 10 drug notifications were issued across the five events and two became statewide advisories.

Pill testing will also be available at Dangerous Goods 6XXL in January and Pitch Music and Arts Festival in March, with more events to be announced.