Nut Cargo An Appetizing Target For Thieves

Almonds, pistachios and other high-value nuts are an appealing commodity for not only health nuts, but also more recently to highly sophisticated criminal organizations in the San Joaquin valley. A cargo theft specialist describes the motivation behind a crime wave hitting California’s lucrative tree nut industry: "It’s not easy to track a nut." It’s also not easy to immediately detect the criminals strategically robbing millions of dollars in nut cargo. But that’s what’s facing growers, the industry and authorities in California, where nut production brought in $9.3 billion in 2014. "It hit us right between the eyes," said Roger Isom, CEO of the Western Agricultural Processors Association.