Netherlands: seizure in Rotterdam of three tons of cocaine hidden in mashed bananas

It is one of the largest drug seizures in the country.

This Friday, the prosecutor's office in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, said customs had seized three tons of cocaine hidden in vats of mashed bananas.

The drug, whose market value has been estimated at 225 million euros, was discovered overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday during a routine check aboard a container from Ecuador to Basel .

"This cocaine seizure is one of the largest in the port of Rotterdam," the prosecution said in a statement, adding that the drugs had been destroyed.

Since the start of the year, nearly 50 tonnes of cocaine have been intercepted

The Netherlands has become a major entry point for drugs - especially cocaine - into Europe, via Rotterdam, the continent's largest port.

Some 50 tonnes of cocaine bound for the Netherlands have been intercepted this year, according to figures from Dutch authorities.

Read also Cocaine trafficking via France: seven suspected members of a Dutch network released

The European police agency Europol expressed concern in a report published in April about an increase in corruption linked to drug trafficking.

Unprecedented amounts of cocaine are at the center of trafficking to the EU from Latin America, generating billions of euros in profits for criminal networks in these two regions, Europol warned.

In February, a joint operation by Belgian, Dutch and German police led to a record seizure in Hamburg and Antwerp of 23 tonnes of cocaine destined for the Netherlands.