17/12/2025
Why mine come from Riverford
Millions of migrant workers face exploitation in Europe’s fields, harvesting the fruit and vegetables that many of us purchase, writes the AGtivist for Wicked Leeks. This was the stark finding of a disturbing investigation published last year by the charity, Oxfam. Their researchers found that in many European countries, workers were being paid less than the minimum wage, and that incidents “of abuse, including sexual abuse, intimidation, and violence in response to strikes, were commonplace.”
The investigation also discovered that workers’ accommodation was “frequently overcrowded, expensive, and isolated” and that some women workers had reported instances of being sexually blackmailed by accommodation supervisors. “Some workers were found to live in makeshift slums, which can lack running water, heating, and waste collection and where there is a risk of disease and fire – either accidental or arson attacks,” the researchers said.
In its report, Oxfam also revealed that accidents and injuries were “frequent occurrences”, with cases of employers failing to give adequate training and protective equipment to workers. There were instances of workers being poisoned, researchers found, and one man died after apparently not receiving any water during a full day’s work in 44-degree heat.
This month, a powerful new film building on these findings will be screened in the UK by the Landworkers’ Alliance (LWA) as a fundraiser for Justice is Not Seasonal, an collective working to bring an end to exploitation on farms. The film, simply titled The Pickers, takes viewers on a journey across southern Europe as workers harvest oranges, strawberries, olives, and blueberries.
The filmmakers behind the documentary and its associated campaign give a rare voice to some of those toiling in Europe’s fields, polytunnels, and packing stations and a much needed opportunity to life the lid on the horrifying conditions faced by those who are, by any standard, at the bottom of our modern day supply chains.
Read the full feature on Wicked Leeks: https://wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk/news/the-agtivist/rotten-at-the-core-the-silent-exploitation-of-migrant-fruit-veg-pickers/
