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How the War on Drugs got us ... blueberries

By Erika Beras,
Keith Romer, Sylvie Douglis, Marianne McCune
Published April 5, 2025 at 4:18 PM EDT
A bowl of blueberries which have been imported from Peru to the United States.
Erika Beras
/
Erika Beras
A bowl of blueberries which have been imported from Peru to the United States.

Ever wondered why you can buy fresh Peruvian blueberries in the dead of winter? The answer, surprisingly, is tied to cocaine. Today on the show, we look at how the war on drugs led to an American trade policy and a foreign aid initiative that won us blueberries all year round.

And for more on trade and tariffs check out Planet Money's homepage. We've got articles looking at how much the new tariffs will raise prices and shows on everything from diamonds to potatoes to why you bought your couch.

This episode was produced by Sylvie Douglis with help from Willa Rubin. It was edited by Marianne McCune and engineered by Jimmy Keeley. It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.

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Music: Source Audio: "Martini Shaker," "You the Man," and "Leisure Girls."

Copyright 2025 NPR

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Erika Beras
Erika Beras (she/her) is a reporter and host for NPR's Planet Money podcast.
Keith Romer
Keith Romer has been a contributing reporter for Planet Money since 2015. He has reported stories on risk-pooling among poker players, whether it's legal to write a spin-off of the children's book Goodnight Moon and the time one man cornered the American market in onions. Sometimes on the show, he sings.
Sylvie Douglis
Marianne McCune
Marianne McCune is a reporter and producer for Embedded: Buffalo Extreme who has more than two decades of experience making award-winning audio stories. She has produced narrative podcast series for New York Magazine (Cover Story), helped start, produce and edit long-form narrative shows for NPR and public radio affiliates (Rough Translation; United States of Anxiety, Season Four), reported locally and internationally (NPR News, NPR's Planet Money and WNYC News) and produced groundbreaking narrative audio tours (SF MOMA, Detour). She is also the founder of Radio Rookies, a narrative youth radio series, that is still thriving at WNYC.