Nothing Is Sacred, Even Your Favorite Foods
You might not think of avocado groves or chocolate factories as the setting for the next Ocean's movie, but real-life heists involving these products are actually big business. Some of them are so sophisticated on the part of the criminals that you can't help taking your hat off to them. Here are 20 of the biggest food heists of all time.
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash
1. The Nutella Heist
In 2013, thieves made off with almost $20,000 worth of nutella from a parked trailer in Germany. Either there's a Nutella black market or these robbers just had a serious sweet tooth.
2. The Great Canadian Maple Syrup Heist
It's only fitting that the biggest heist in Canadian history involved maple syrup. Between 2011 and 2012, over the course of several months, thieves emptied the contents of maple syrup barrels from a facility, replacing it with water. The total robbery amounted to $18.7 million.
3. The Russian Caviar Heist
Caviar is big business in Russia. It's especially enjoyed around the holidays; however, one Russian businessman got a shock when he discovered, returning to Moscow after a New Year's party, that 22 tons or $470,000 worth of his precious stuff was missing. The thieves got away with it too.
4. The Parmiggiano Reggiano Heist
With one wheel of parmiggiano reggiano selling for $500, it's no wonder thieves tend to target this "king of cheeses." In order to be classified as true parmiggiano reggiano, the wheels have to age in a warehouse for at least a year like sitting ducks. In 2016, a group of criminals got away with stealing over $100,000 of the stuff from a factory, and police reported a total of $7 million worth of it was stolen in the previous two-year period.
5. The Australian Salmon Heist
In an elaborate inside job, five employees at a fish processing plant in Sydney, Australia were arrested for purposely mislabelling premium salmon as waste and removing it from the facility. 250 tons of salmon worth $1.4 million were stolen over several months in 2020.
6. The California Walnut Heist
Increased demand for this premium nut has made them a premium target for thieves. In 2013, 80,000 pounds worth $300,000 were lifted mid-shipment, most likely by a suspicious delivery driver.
7. The French Truffle Heist
If you've ever ordered a dish involving truffles, you know how expensive even a few modest shavings can be, making them a tantalizing target for thieves. In Provence, France in 2005, a group of robbers in night-vision goggles made off with over $100,000 worth of Périgord black truffles. Truffle-hunting dogs which are trained with the sole purpose of finding the prized fungi are also routinely stolen.
Thea Chesney (thea) on Wikimedia
8. The Wine Cellar Heist
If Bonnie and Clyde were wine enthusiasts, this would be their crime. In 2021 a woman sat down for a late dinner at a five-star hotel in Spain, distracting the restaurant manager while her partner stole the master key and snuck down to the wine cellar. They made off with 45 bottles of the restaurant's best wines equalling a total value of $1.6 million, including an 1806 vintage valued at $370,000.
9. The Vanilla Bean Heist
In another inside job, a woman was caught stealing $139,000 worth of vanilla beans from the import company she worked for. Vanilla beans are the second most expensive spice in the world, valued at $7,000 a pound.
10. The Great Austrian Chocolate Heist
In 2019, a thief in Austria posing as a courier, using falsified papers, took off with a truckload carrying 20 tons of chocolate worth around $55,000. The thief was never caught.
11. The Gourmet Meat Heist
A truck containing 40,000 pounds of meat amounting to $100,000 was stolen from a truck yard in Hamilton, Ontario. Police still have beef with the thieves who got away with it.
12. The Avocado Heist
Judging how much an avocado toast goes for at your local hipster cafe, you can surmise how lucrative this fruit business is. Earlier this year a band of masked bandits tried stealing truckloads from a grove in California but were caught red-handed. An avocado farmer in Spain wasn't so lucky though when thieves swiped over 4,000 pounds of avocados from his plantation.
13. The Tomato Heist
In 2011, a sharp rise in tomato prices due to a bad harvest in Mexico led to an increase in thefts. Six tractor loads of tomatoes valued at $300,000 were stolen from a farm in Florida. The tomato gang even set up a fake trucking company to achieve their aim.
14. The Bee Hive Heist
With bees under threat, their value and that of their honey has increased, leading to more bee-related thefts. In 2016, a beekeeper in Quebec reported 180 of his hives worth $200,000 were stolen and a few months later, some of the most valuable bees in Canada, part of a $7 million pollination study were taken from a university.
15. African Coffee Heists
With coffee bean prices hitting record highs, theft is becoming a serious problem in places like Uganda where armed gangs steal beans directly from the source or from transport trucks. One pair of criminals were recently apprehended for stealing 220 pounds of coffee beans; however, criminals in this part of the world often get away unscathed.
Julian Andres Carmona Serrato on Unsplash
16. The Great Olive Oil Heist
Given how sought-after and expensive it is, extra virgin olive oil has long been a worthy target for thieves. Earlier this year, $2.5 million (18 truckloads) of award-winning olive oil was stolen from a Texas company.
17. The Cheddar Cheese Heist
Due to its high value, cheese has become the most stolen food in the world, and cheddar is no exception. Earlier this year, over $300,000 worth of award-winning cheddar was stolen from a British cheese retailer in London's Borough Market. The thief posed as a representative of a renowned French cheese distributor in order to get away with it.
Bob Peters from Leeds, UK on Wikimedia
18. The Tuna Heist
In South Philadelphia earlier this year, thieves stole hundreds of pounds of tuna worth approximately $10,000 from a parked cargo truck. Police suspect this was part of a larger string of food-related crimes in the area that included salmon theft amounting to $2,400 and a $15,000 beef robbery.
19. The Nut Heist
In 2006, a group of thieves in California got away with millions of dollars worth of tree nuts by posing as the trucking company tasked with transporting the precious cargo. Nuts are a common target for thieves in the California area because they're expensive, have a long shelf life, and are hard to track.
20. The Lobster Heist
The classic gourmet food is also an alluring target for criminals. $1 million worth of lobster was stolen in a Canada Day heist in the eastern province of New Brunswick. The thieves attempted to load their stolen transport truck with frozen lobsters but were caught and charged by police.
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