Lobsters to tequila: Cargo theft is eating America’s lunch and driving up food prices

As families across the country were preparing to celebrate Christmas, criminals were busy playing the Grinch. On Christmas Eve, a $400,000 shipment of live lobsters headed to Costco warehouses in Illinois and Minnesota vanished after pickup in Massachusetts. Posing as a legitimate trucking company, thieves disabled the truck’s GPS and disappeared with the load, a calculated act of cargo theft now under investigation by the FBI.

As brazen as it sounds, this was no one-off heist. Thieves recently made off with two truckloads carrying 24,000 bottles of Guy Fieri and Sammy Hagar’s Santo Tequila — worth more than $1 million — using fake carrier identities, spoofed emails and manipulated tracking systems to divert the freight. These high-profile heists are symptoms of a nationwide epidemic driven by organized theft groups that exploit digital platforms, stolen identities and fraudulent credentials to hijack the U.S. supply chain. Cargo theft now costs the trucking industry $6.6 billion annually, or more than $18 million each day. Those losses translate into higher insurance premiums, costly security investments and operational disruptions. With nearly three-quarters of stolen freight never recovered, consumers ultimately pay the price at the checkout line.

As they have for decades, bandits still stalk tractor trailers and strike when they are stopped at a rest area or even a traffic light. But strategic theft targeting trucking — which often involves elaborate techniques like fictitious pickup and identity fraud — has surged by 1,500% since 2022. The rapid digitization of the supply chain has opened up cyber vulnerabilities that organized theft groups exploit to steal freight remotely. 

AMERICAN TRUCKING INDUSTRY URGES LAWMAKERS TO ACT AS ONLINE CARGO THEFT SURGES

According to the transportation security firm CargoNet, food and beverages accounted for the greatest share of thefts in 2024, with dramatic spikes in meat and beverage loads during 2025. Criminals prefer these items because they are easy to resell and hard to trace. A broken seal can condemn an entire load and perishable goods rarely trigger rapid law-enforcement action.

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The fallout extends beyond higher prices. Retailers across the country have announced store closures, with executives citing persistent theft as a contributing factor. When stores shut their doors, communities can lose access to groceries, pharmacies and essential services, deepening food deserts and economic strain. And with grocery prices top of mind for voters this election year, lawmakers must confront this problem head-on.

That’s why we’re encouraged the House Judiciary Committee advanced the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act (CORCA), which would finally give law enforcement the tools to investigate and prosecute organized cargo theft, improve reporting and strengthen public-private partnerships. With no clear federal jurisdiction, real-time data sharing, or coordination, law enforcement is currently fighting these criminals with one hand tied behind its back. CORCA would change all of that.

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But a committee vote isn’t enough. CORCA must now pass the full House and Senate and be signed into law so consumers, truck drivers and American businesses are better protected at a time when grocery prices are already stretching household budgets.

If Congress fails to act, the next headline will not just be about missing lobsters or stolen tequila. It will be about higher prices and growing insecurity for American families. Let’s make sure this is the moment lawmakers stepped up to defend our supply chain, our businesses and the American consumer.