Fresh fruit and vegetables all year round have become a given for us. The negative consequences for the environment are now known in many circles of society. Much less known is who harvests the fruit and vegetables. The conditions under which these people live and work seem to be of no importance. What matters is that the picking pace is right. These female harvest workers are mostly migrants. Between 4,000 and 5,000 of them, for example, work in Italy during the harvest of tomatoes and oranges. One million seasonal workers in total cultivate Europe's fields. Their status, mostly without papers and without any security, makes them vulnerable to exploitative practices. They work without contracts or insurance for the lowest wages. This exploitation on Europe's fields is not the exception or a misunderstanding, but the rule. This exploitation is systematic and aims to secure the accustomed standard of living in Europe.

This film follows several female harvest workers in Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Germany as they harvest olives, oranges, strawberries, or blueberries. They are at the center, they receive voices and faces, and they tell their stories defiantly and bitterly.

The film also presents solutions, depicting how a new EU-wide supply chain law was fought for in the EU Parliament, which holds supermarkets more accountable. It documents how a cooperative in Southern Italy produces fair oranges and thereby creates decent conditions for its workers.

DE 2024

Director: Elke Sasse

Tickets cost 7 euros (reduced for students and holders of the JULEICA card: 5 euros) and are available at the cinema box office or online at www.kinoneuwied.de.