Organized criminal syndicates are rational actors too.  According to the New York Times, there have been a rash of truck hijackings where the cargo was… food.  They “stole six tractor-trailer loads of tomatoes and a truck full of cucumbers from Florida growers. They also stole a truckload of frozen meat. The total value of the illegal haul: about $300,000.”

With food prices on the rise due to, inter alia: a cold winter, increasing worldwide demand, and inflation, criminals have adapted to this increasingly profitable enterprise.

It was a very sophisticated operation, hitting trucks in different jurisdictions in short amounts of time.  Given the perishable nature of food (as compared to typical hijacking of trucks of cigarettes, electronics, clothes, etc.) indicates that they had a buyer and/or distribution network set up.

(hat tip: Grub Street NY, “Vegetable Bandits Are a Thing Now”)