Wine growers told to keep an eye on stocks of fertilisers due to terrorist threat

Your farms contain many sought-after items and are often very vulnerable. It is important to increase the level of security and be more vigilant”, warned officer Bruno Métifet, appointed to oversee security for gendarmeries in Charentes. Speaking at a conference on spraying equipment organised by the Cognac chambers of agriculture on September 7 in Saint-Preuil, the serviceman warned producers of a growing number of thefts involving fuel and agricultural products, and the risk of them being used to prepare terrorist attacks.

Although the danger could be viewed as surprising by some, distressing by others, it is being taken extremely seriously by the gendarmerie after a jihad explosives laboratory was dismantled in Villejuif recently. “These were not agricultural products, but if it becomes harder to buy sulphuric acid and hydrogen peroxide, terrorists may revert to more basic methods. Fuel and various nitrates contained in fertilisers can be used as precursors for home-made explosives to carry out attacks ordered by the Islamic State”, said Métifet.

Locked doors

To reduce the risks, the gendarme advised producers to store agricultural products in the most secure places. This is a paradigm shift in the way people live in the countryside where doors are often unlocked and keys sometimes left in the locks. Asking producers to be vigilant, the gendarmerie also said they should be told about any thefts, even when no formal complaint has been made, so that even weak indicators can be assessed.