A story about asparagus!

Until a few years ago, I knew little about Peruvian asparagus, but became curious when I came across a piece of news with the headline: “Peru seizes two tonnes of cocaine in asparagus packages”. I was intrigued: why would smugglers hide cocaine inside asparagus packages? 

I discovered, after some web browsing, that Peru is one of the biggest exporters of asparagus to North America and Europe. Knowing that asparagus requires lots of water, I wondered why Peruvian farmers should produce this vegetable in such a dry country? There are several reports showing concern about water scarcity in Peru and particularly the Ica Valley region, which also happens to be one of the most important asparagus producing areas. The answer goes back to before the 1990s and it was not a simple story! 

Read the full story at TABLE Debates : https://www.tabledebates.org/essay/coca-and-asparagus-how-us-drug-policy-led-soaring-water-scarcity-peru