In a bid to crack down on escalating thefts of oranges, regional association Agrofuturo is urging authorities to put the squeeze on fruit-snatchers.
The association wants police to create a special orange-snatcher catcher unit to foil multi-million euro criminal networks, arrest their masterminds and restore oranges to their rightful owners.
Just recently, producers estimate they have lost as much as €3 million from raids on their orchards.
The problem has generated a “feeling of panic” among growers, it says.
So far, authorities have not responded to Algfuturo’s concerns. The association formed last year and stresses that many millions of euros have been ploughed into the sector to modernise production.
