Italian authorities seized nearly 1,700 pounds of cocaine hidden in a refrigerated shipping container carrying bananas at the Port of Vado Ligure, a commercial seaport on Italy’s northwestern Mediterranean coast about 30 miles southwest of Genoa.

Officers found 650 brick-shaped packages concealed among dozens of banana pallets. The container had originated in Ecuador, one of the world’s largest banana exporters on South America’s Pacific coast. Italy’s Guardia di Finanza, the country’s financial police, announced the seizure Tuesday after working with the Italian Customs and Monopolies Agency during a cargo inspection, according to an official statement from the Guardia di Finanza:

Authorities focused on South America-Europe container traffic

Investigators targeted container movements between South America and Europe, a major global trade lane for fresh produce. Refrigerated containers are central to that trade because they allow perishable goods such as bananas to move quickly across long distances, creating large volumes of legitimate cargo that customs agencies must screen without disrupting supply chains. Officials identified the shipment through intelligence work and cargo inspections before opening the refrigerated container.

Preliminary tests confirmed that the packages contained highly pure cocaine. Authorities said the seizure came after another major drug interdiction at the same port and ranked among the largest recent cocaine busts recorded at Vado Ligure.

Cocaine had an estimated street value of $290 million

Italian officials estimated the cocaine had a street value of about 250 million euros, or roughly $290 million. Authorities said traffickers hid the drugs inside a legitimate banana shipment in an attempt to avoid detection.

Officials also said the Port of Vado Ligure has become an increasingly important gateway for containerized cargo entering Europe. The increase in trade volume makes the port a target for international drug trafficking organizations moving cocaine from South America into European markets.

Criminal organizations continue to use legitimate refrigerated produce shipments to move cocaine through international supply chains. The case underscores the role of cargo inspections, intelligence work, and cooperation between financial police and customs authorities along major trade lanes linking South America and Europe.