Almond growers shell out more for security

Almond growers shell out more for security Intrepid criminals are taking the almond industry's plea of 'a can a day' a little too serious.
   Containerloads of the now high-end commodity have become the targets of choice for agricultural thieves in California's Central Valley — more than a dozen containers last year alone.
   Losses to thieves last year totaled almost $2 million, with most of the purloined containers headed overseas.
   Now with record high prices and a record crop expected this year, the industry is concerned that the thieves may want to set records of their own. Several years ago, almonds were trading at about $1.50 a pound. In 2005, the price shot up to nearly $4 a pound. A container can hold 40,000 pounds or more of the nuts, making it a tempting and lucrative target that is both hard to trace and easy to dispose of.
   The almonds are also becoming pervasive in the Central Valley. Almonds rank as the state’s top agricultural export with a $1.08 billion value in 2003 and California’s sixth-leading agricultural commodity with a value of $1.5 billion for farmers. Nearly 80 percent of the world’s almonds are produced in California.   
   When the thefts began last year, the growers held a series of meetings to discuss security and protection, Martha Venable, a spokeswoman for the California Almond Board told InsideBayArea.com
   “One of the main things that came out of those meetings was not to leave full containers in yards and not to leave wheels under the product overnight,” she told the Web site. “Growers were also urged to revisit their security programs, such as fences, lighting and security systems.”
   One sure method of protection, theft insurance, is also being heavily promoted sue to the thefts.