Decanter.com has reported that: “An army of marauding baboons has been terrorising wine growers in the Franschhoek Valley region of South Africa, raiding local farms and devouring grapes.” One winery reported that he had lost nearly 40% of his crop to the animals!

In Israel, maybe grapes aren’t eaten by animals as exotic as baboons, but there are certain local animals that enjoy feasting on the fruit. On the Golan Heights, the main pest is wild boars. Though it is forbidden to eat wild boar under the Jewish Dietary Laws, they have no hesitation about enjoying the sweet, ripe grapes designated for premium kosher wines to be produced from the high altitude, volcanic Golan Heights.

In Yatir Forest, in the southern Judean Hills, which adjoins the Negev Dessert, the regular predators are Hyenas or Jackals. Slightly more unusual is the situation when local Bedouins are not so careful about keeping on eye on their camels. “When a camel gets into a vineyard”, says Ya’acov Ben Dor, managing director of Yatir Winery, “it is as though a combine harvester has been at work, the whole vine is damaged.” It is not only the fruit that is eaten, but also that years growth of the vine is also enjoyed as a side salad.