Zambia is home to a rare and coveted rosewood called mukula, but the country has been losing its treeline for years. The Zambian government put regulations and penalties in place to stop the illegal logging of this vital resource, but still, the deforestation continued. So what was accounting for the rapid disappearance of mukula? One undercover investigation exposed a chain of corruption and fraud – leading all the way to the top of Zambia’s government.

<p>Zambia is home to a rare and coveted rosewood called mukula, but the country has been losing its treeline for years. The Zambian government put regulations and penalties in place to stop the illegal logging of this vital resource, but still, the deforestation continued. So what was accounting for the rapid disappearance of mukula? One undercover investigation exposed a chain of corruption and fraud – leading all the way to the top of Zambia’s government.</p>

The biggest black market you’ve never heard of is blooming right under your nose. Whether it’s a 4,000-pound cactus shoveled from the Arizona desert or delicate orchids pinched from the tangled jungle of Peru, rare plants are at the center of a rapidly growing and lucrative world of crime. Hosted by plant expert Summer Rayne Oakes, Bad Seeds plunges straight into it, featuring the buyers, the sellers, the obsessives, and those who came face-to-face with the criminals behind an underworld few know exist.

<p>The biggest black market you’ve never heard of is blooming right under your nose. Whether it’s a 4,000-pound cactus shoveled from the Arizona desert or delicate orchids pinched from the tangled jungle of Peru, rare plants are at the center of a rapidly growing and lucrative world of crime. Hosted by plant expert Summer Rayne Oakes, Bad Seeds plunges straight into it, featuring the buyers, the sellers, the obsessives, and those who came face-to-face with the criminals behind an underworld few know exist.</p>

Bad Seeds

Episode 7: The Tree That Bleeds

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/8128f694-3bf1-47ba-8df2-b00a0114dc82/transcript

Advertisement