LAZIO - The team has been investigating The Green Gold of Italy, or Kiwi Revolution as it is known locally, since April 2022. The Lazio region of Italy has become the world's largest producer of kiwis in the past years. But glitter doesn't always mean gold.

For thousands of farm workers trafficked from Punjab in India to work in the kiwi fields of Lazio, the sweet kiwi business is bittersweet. Following the entire supply chain of workers and kiwis - from Punjabi villages in India to Italian fields and European consumers - we have discovered an industry based on cheap labor and labor trafficking. The story is documented with more than 50 interviews with families and traffickers in Punjab, workers, farmers and authorities in Lazio, experts, organizations and with companies that are making their profits producing and exporting The Green Gold of Italy. In international markets, kiwis are sold under brand names like Zepri in stores all over Europe.

This project won the third prize of the Fetisov Journalism Awards in the Outstanding Investigative Reporting category.

© Stefania Prandi

Supported
€12,600 allocated on 11/04/2022
ID:
MSU/2022/032

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  • Il gusto amaro dei kiwi italiani, Internazionale, 14/04/2023;
  • Non è dolce il kiwi italiano per i raccoglitori del Punjab, Il Manifesto, 20/04/2023;
  • Bittere kiwis, Tagesspiegel, 26/06/2023.

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