A FARNWORTH industrial unit was the operating base for a multi-million pound drugs conspiracy to sell banned "legal highs" around the world, a court heard.

From April 2010 to May 2013, Michaela Doyle, Ian Mercer, Christian White and Aaran White were all involved in the distribution and packaging of the “designer” drugs, which were sold online, serving customers as far afield as Australia, Bolton Crown Court was told.

Francis McEntee, prosecuting, said the drugs were bought and sold with the use of “disguise and deception”, packaged with promotional items, such as T-shirts, to hide them.

He said: “This was a sophisticated and highly profitable operation that has taken drug dealing off street corners and put it on the internet.”

The jury was told that the manufacturing base of the operation was at Drake Mill, in Bloomfield Road, Farnworth, and that it also had an office in Cheetham Hill, which acted as the hub for processing orders.

Raw materials would be ordered from abroad and delivered to different addresses, then manufactured and packaged into saleable goods at the plant, the court heard.

Mr McEntee said that some of names of products sold included “heaven” and “jolly blue pearls”, and they came with the warning message “not for human consumption”, which he said was "a pretence".

Some of the drugs, which were banned as a result of a change in the law in April 2010, promised to have effects similar to cocaine, ketamine or amphetamine.

Mr McEntee said the group ran the business from a number of websites, the principle one being widemouthfrogs.com, with the products being marketed in a “brash and bright” manner.

He told the jury that this website alone brought in sales of more than £2.5 million, while the total figure, including other websites operated by the group, rose to £3.6 million.

The prosecution alleges that the four defendants were heavily involved in the “well equipped” and “well organised” production and distribution of the drugs, and that it was a “business-like operation”.

He said they attempted to disguise their products as “research chemicals”, and that people who bought the drugs online were advised to say they had purchased handbags and accessories if their bank asked any questions.

The jury heard that the conspiracy started in 2010 when Paula White, who Mr McEntee said was the head of the group, began to distribute the drugs, marked as medical items such as nasal sprays, through a post office in Eccles.

Mr McEntee said the operation then began to expand.

At the end of 2010, about 200 parcels per day were sent out through post offices, and they also began to use post offices at Sedgley Park in Prestwich, as well as in Little Hulton, Walkden and Kearsley.

He added that the group moved to the Farnworth site in 2012 to cater for demand.

He said the move into new premises after the change in the law showed that the defendants knew they were dealing with the sale of illegal drugs.

The transactions at the post office were brought to the attention of police, who began to monitor them.

In addition, police conducted test purchases, attempting to buy a small amount of most of the drugs available, and tests revealed that all were controlled, illegal substances.

Doyle, aged 44, of Croft Street, Salford; Mercer, aged 47, of Birch Road, Walkden; Aaran White, aged 22, of Croft Street, Salford and Christian White, aged 39, of Nelson Street, Salford, all deny conspiracy to supply drugs.

Paula White, aged 46, of Stafford Road, Eccles, previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply class B drugs.

Rudie Chiu, aged 26, of Hornbeam Way, Manchester; Netta Hymanson, aged 64, of Circular Road, Prestwich; Sheena Jessop, aged 47, of Grants Lane, Ramsbottom, were previously found guilty of conspiring to supply class B drugs.

The trial continues.