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As of a couple of years ago, countries in South America were responsible for collectively producing close to 2,000 tons of pure cocaine on an annual basis, and officials in Ecuador managed to seize six of them with the help of the drug-sniffing dogs that discovered a massive stash hidden inside a shipment of bananas.
The coca plant that’s harnessed to make cocaine grows almost exclusively in the north and western areas of South America, and Colombia, Peru, and Bolivia have historically comprised the “Big Three” of producers that are responsible for virtually all of the global supply (the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime estimates the trio respectively made 61%, 26%, and 13% of the white powder that was whipped up in 2020).
A sizeable chunk of the coca plants that are grown in Colombia is situated near the border of Ecuador, and coastal access means the latter has long been used as a transit hub for drug smugglers looking to ship their wares around the globe.
There’s been a noticeable spike in seizures in Ecuador since 2019 (which has coincided with a worrying spike in drug-related violence and murders); in 2022, officials confiscated a grand total of 179 tons, and they were recently able to add a significant chunk to the running tally for 2024 due to what unfolded in a port city outside of Guayaquil.
According to the BBC, drug-sniffing dogs assisting officials in Posorja called their attention to a shipment of bananas destined for Germany before they took a closer look at the shipping container that was home to a staggering 5,630 individually packaged kilos of cocaine that ultimately weighed in at 6.23 tons.
Ecuador Prosecutor's Office
It’s believed the cocaine would’ve had a street value of approximately $224 million if it had made it to Europe with the help of the five people who were arrested in connection with the crime (including an employee for the export company responsible for the shipment who reportedly ratted out four of his accomplices in the wake of the drug bust).