With demand rising for France’s prized black truffle, theft has increased, with one incident of an armed hold-up of a truffle farmer and more recently a murder.
Last week, French farmer Laurent Rambaud, 37, was sentenced by jury to eight years in jail for shooting dead a man he believed was stealing his cache of truffles.
The town of Grignan in northern Provence, where Rambaud lives, is the centre of a truffle “golden triangle” which produces more than 60% of French specimens, including the black Périgord.
Despite the number of varieties, yields have decreased from 400 tons in the 1920s to a mere 40 tons today. Some scientists claim that behind the drop is lower rainfall due to global warming.
This has only helped push up prices which can rocket to more and €1,000 per kilo during the Christmas period.
It was during this period, on the night of 20 December 2010, farmer Rambaud went to inspect his truffle patches armed with a shotgun. He found part-time ambulance worker Ernest Pardo, 43, walking his dog. Pardo was known in the area as a truffle hunter and also for his indictments for car theft.
Taking him for a thief, Rambaud fired. The bullets entered Pardo’s leg and chest, killing him quickly. “I felt in danger, I fired the shots one after another to leave him no chance,” he told the court.
Although the prosecutor sought a sentence of 12 years, arguing that Rambaud was “conscious of his actions”, the court decided the killing was not premeditated and reduced the charge from murder to manslaughter.
The spate of robberies and intimidation in the area quietened down in the aftermath of the murder but are reported to be rising again.
Some farmers are investing in better technology to foil thieves, such as motion-sensitive cameras and night-vision goggles for police.
Legislation against theft introduced in 2012 provides for a maximum of three years in prison and a €45,000 fine, but less is often imposed by judges.
