5 ms·

The pods are harvested by hand right? It has to be quite an undertaking to harvest 15 acres of tiny pods by hand in the middle of the night without the landown

The pods are harvested by hand right? It has to be quite an undertaking to harvest 15 acres of tiny pods by hand in the middle of the night without the landowner noticing... Besides, if theft really was a huge problem and the goods really that valuable, you'd just leave someone to sleep in a tent in the middle of the fields during the critical harvest time. Something smells fishy about this story...

ciabattabread 3y ago
The paranoid arrogance of HN commenters! Now go buy some bitcoin.
- krisoft 3y ago
  > The paranoid arrogance of HN commenters! Yeah, i mean we all should accept everything written in every article with no critical thinking whatsoever. You choose to interpret the comment as arogant. I choose to interpret it that they see an obvious solution which is neither mentioned nor implemented and thus they have questions about what they are missing. Clearly if what one sees as obvious is not done then one is likely missing something important.
  - sli 3y ago
    A single person cannot guard 15 acres of crops. The arrogance is the assumption that the farmers are so stupid that they didn't even try this "simple solution" that would never work.
    - valvar 3y ago
      They were questioning the story, not the intelligence of the farmers.
    - krisoft 3y ago
      > A single person cannot guard 15 acres of crops. But that is the question: why can’t a single person guard the crop? The answer to that question would reveal more about the shape of the problem. Is it because the single guard won’t even see and hear when the illegal harvesters get to work? (That is to say harvesting is so quick and silent that the guard would be none the wiser?) Is it because the guard would see the harvest but would be overwhelmed by the illegal harvesters?
  - vaidhy 3y ago
    The fact you think it is obvious and the fact it is not implemented should mean it is flawed in an obvious way for those facing the problem. It is indeed arrogant to think that naive armchair solutions should be considered seriously.
    - krisoft 3y ago
      > The fact you think it is obvious and the fact it is not implemented should mean it is flawed in an obvious way for those facing the problem. Yes. Agreed. It seems we are on the same page on this. Where we seem to disagree is what follows from this observation. You call it arogance to share one’s thoughts and questions, i call it curiosity. If we all just sit on our backside and think “hmm, clearly setting guards should work, yet the article doesn’t even mention it, there might be something I’m missing”, then we all will die not knowing any more. If someone asks it we might learn from the answers.
phyzome 3y ago
The pods aren't tiny, and it wouldn't take long to steal quite a sack full of them. « you'd just leave someone to sleep in a tent in the middle of the fields during the critical harvest time. » The word "just" is doing a lot of work here.
krisoft 3y ago
The article speculates in multiple places about potential organised crime involvement. If so that would explain the situation. It is one thing to know that you are being robbed and another to be able to do something about it. > you'd just leave someone to sleep in a tent in the middle of the fields during the critical harvest time That depends on many factors. Mainly on how long the harvest interval. If there are only a few days from the day it is first possibly worth harvesting to the optimal day that benefits this strategy. The longer the interval the costlier the strategy. Other thing which can affect the viability is the likelihood that your guard can do something about the theft. If the guard is alone in the woods with no way to call for help then what good is it to have a guard?
Finnucane 3y ago
You wouldn't want to steal the pods from the plant, that would have no value. The beans have to be dried for weeks before they're saleable.
webnrrd2k 3y ago
Not too far from me is a US city known for its avocados, Fallbrook, and it wasn't uncommon for farms to get raided at night. Early in the growing season, ripe avocados can fetch maybe $1 each. Some guys and a truck can grab something like $10,000 worth in a night, maybe more. Even a few acres is pretty big, and, unless you patrol it regularly, there is a lot to keep track of. I didn't live there, but I knew people that lived there, so don't take the numbers too seriously. But I know that it was a problem.
- TylerE 3y ago
  To provide a bit of context for some... a typical US suburban home sits on a quarter acre or so. An American (or the other kind, to a rough approximation) football field is just over an acre not counting the end zones.
  - Tijdreiziger 3y ago
    Interesting: "akker" is Dutch for "farm".
    - jonasdegendt 3y ago
      Nitpick but it’s Dutch for farmland, the part of the farm that’s actually used for cultivation.
gumby 3y ago
Instead just chop the branches and toss them into the truck; harvest the pods later. Though TBF you'd think that would have made it into the article if that's what happens. Perhaps this is sustainable parasitism? Sadly a lot of crimes cause many times the damage than what the criminal gets. Smash a big shop window to grab a few items and run. Or around here in the Central Valley, poke a hole in a fuel tank and fill up a canister (which you can sell), then walk away while the rest of the fuel, possibly hundreds of gallons, drains out into the ground, poisoning the farmland on which it stands.
moralestapia 3y ago
The landowner usually lives a hundred kms away from there. They leave some guy behind who is supposed to watch, but guess who was late/sick/whatever that night?

ciabattabread 3y ago

The paranoid arrogance of HN commenters! Now go buy some bitcoin.

krisoft 3y ago
> The paranoid arrogance of HN commenters! Yeah, i mean we all should accept everything written in every article with no critical thinking whatsoever. You choose to interpret the comment as arogant. I choose to interpret it that they see an obvious solution which is neither mentioned nor implemented and thus they have questions about what they are missing. Clearly if what one sees as obvious is not done then one is likely missing something important.
- sli 3y ago
  A single person cannot guard 15 acres of crops. The arrogance is the assumption that the farmers are so stupid that they didn't even try this "simple solution" that would never work.
  - valvar 3y ago
    They were questioning the story, not the intelligence of the farmers.
  - krisoft 3y ago
    > A single person cannot guard 15 acres of crops. But that is the question: why can’t a single person guard the crop? The answer to that question would reveal more about the shape of the problem. Is it because the single guard won’t even see and hear when the illegal harvesters get to work? (That is to say harvesting is so quick and silent that the guard would be none the wiser?) Is it because the guard would see the harvest but would be overwhelmed by the illegal harvesters?
- vaidhy 3y ago
  The fact you think it is obvious and the fact it is not implemented should mean it is flawed in an obvious way for those facing the problem. It is indeed arrogant to think that naive armchair solutions should be considered seriously.
  - krisoft 3y ago
    > The fact you think it is obvious and the fact it is not implemented should mean it is flawed in an obvious way for those facing the problem. Yes. Agreed. It seems we are on the same page on this. Where we seem to disagree is what follows from this observation. You call it arogance to share one’s thoughts and questions, i call it curiosity. If we all just sit on our backside and think “hmm, clearly setting guards should work, yet the article doesn’t even mention it, there might be something I’m missing”, then we all will die not knowing any more. If someone asks it we might learn from the answers.

phyzome 3y ago

The pods aren't tiny, and it wouldn't take long to steal quite a sack full of them. « you'd just leave someone to sleep in a tent in the middle of the fields during the critical harvest time. » The word "just" is doing a lot of work here.

krisoft 3y ago

The article speculates in multiple places about potential organised crime involvement. If so that would explain the situation. It is one thing to know that you are being robbed and another to be able to do something about it. > you'd just leave someone to sleep in a tent in the middle of the fields during the critical harvest time That depends on many factors. Mainly on how long the harvest interval. If there are only a few days from the day it is first possibly worth harvesting to the optimal day that benefits this strategy. The longer the interval the costlier the strategy. Other thing which can affect the viability is the likelihood that your guard can do something about the theft. If the guard is alone in the woods with no way to call for help then what good is it to have a guard?

Finnucane 3y ago

You wouldn't want to steal the pods from the plant, that would have no value. The beans have to be dried for weeks before they're saleable.

webnrrd2k 3y ago

Not too far from me is a US city known for its avocados, Fallbrook, and it wasn't uncommon for farms to get raided at night. Early in the growing season, ripe avocados can fetch maybe $1 each. Some guys and a truck can grab something like $10,000 worth in a night, maybe more. Even a few acres is pretty big, and, unless you patrol it regularly, there is a lot to keep track of. I didn't live there, but I knew people that lived there, so don't take the numbers too seriously. But I know that it was a problem.

TylerE 3y ago
To provide a bit of context for some... a typical US suburban home sits on a quarter acre or so. An American (or the other kind, to a rough approximation) football field is just over an acre not counting the end zones.
- Tijdreiziger 3y ago
  Interesting: "akker" is Dutch for "farm".
  - jonasdegendt 3y ago
    Nitpick but it’s Dutch for farmland, the part of the farm that’s actually used for cultivation.

gumby 3y ago

Instead just chop the branches and toss them into the truck; harvest the pods later. Though TBF you'd think that would have made it into the article if that's what happens. Perhaps this is sustainable parasitism? Sadly a lot of crimes cause many times the damage than what the criminal gets. Smash a big shop window to grab a few items and run. Or around here in the Central Valley, poke a hole in a fuel tank and fill up a canister (which you can sell), then walk away while the rest of the fuel, possibly hundreds of gallons, drains out into the ground, poisoning the farmland on which it stands.

moralestapia 3y ago

The landowner usually lives a hundred kms away from there. They leave some guy behind who is supposed to watch, but guess who was late/sick/whatever that night?