Coca plantation, Putumayo, Colombia

Here it is, the controversial plant. Far in the distance in the mountain range opposite to our hiking path sits a field of Coca. As it really wasn't that hard to discover, our driver speculated it had already been found and was possibly being monitored by the police. As they are often booby-trapped with landmines, this can be a lengthy and dangerous operation.

This plant has only been controversial since the 80s. Before that, for a whopping 8,000 years (if you include Peru) it has been used as a mild stimulant barely stronger than coffee. To this day, it's perfectly legal in Colombia to chew the leaves, although in our experience its definitely not normalized. Our guide had done it a few times and very often had to explain to locals what he was doing.

Growing coca is very attractive for farmers, if not their only choice if they are really poor. It can be harvested several times per year and if processed for the wrong end product (cocaine), barely takes up any space so initial transport is easy.

Indeed, one of the complexities of the war on drugs lies in farming. It is culturally impossible to eradicate this plant as a whole. Furthermore, public opinion does not see the farming itself as an act of evil. Thus, strong government intervention aimed at farmers creates a lot of social unrest. My take on all this: follow the money, not the plant.

As for the safety situation: we didn't feel truly unsafe when finding this. It was a quick peek and snap, and keeping the discussion only between us and the guide, so no local knew we saw it. It's best to play the ignorant card I guess. You saw nothing, you heard nothing, don't ask questions and definitely don't take photos ;)