Yvan Sagnet is the Co-Founder of NO CAP in Italy and Gianantonio Ricci is Projects Director at Chico Mendes. Over the past few years, NO CAP and Chico Mendes have implemented the Spartacus project to reduce the endemic exploitation of migrant workers in the Italian agricultural sector. They do so by providing direct support to migrant workers while also testing and scaling a sustainable and effective alternative to the existing agrifood chain. EPIM has been supporting the Spartacus project since January 2023.
Michela Bramardi spoke with Yvan and Gianantonio about their work in Italian. A Deepl translated excerpt is published below.
Yvan Sagnet (NO CAP) and Gianantonio Ricci (Giuste Terre, former Chico Mendes)
Your work addresses the interconnected issues of labour exploitation among migrants and the current state of the Italian agrifood system. Could you elaborate on how these two topics are linked and what it entails to tackle both simultaneously?
The Italian agri-food system relies heavily on migrant labour, which is essential for its survival. Without the contributions of migrant workers, many agricultural enterprises would struggle to function. However, this workforce is often exploited, as numerous emblematic cases demonstrate, such as that of Satnam Singh, an Indian migrant worker who died in the Agro Pontino countryside. Singh was abandoned outside his home by his employer, who feared legal repercussions due to his irregular employment. His case underscores the dire conditions faced by thousands of exploited migrant workers, many of whom are trapped in an ‘agromafioso’ system.
The sector is built on the systematic lowering of labour costs, generating profit through exploitation, particularly of migrant workers. Meanwhile, the institutional response is more ideological than pragmatic, failing to support migrant workers and instead exacerbating tensions. There is a striking lack of structured policies to address essential issues such as regular employment, housing, and worker training. This short-sighted approach not only harms workers but also puts farmers in a difficult position, forcing them to operate in an increasingly complex and dysfunctional system.
Our project seeks to bridge these gaps by helping workers secure legal and dignified employment, free from exploitation, while also supporting companies in addressing labour shortages and obtaining fair prices for their products from distribution chains.
However, the absence of a supportive institutional ecosystem combined with dominant ideological narratives makes this work an uphill battle, further deepening an already critical situation.
Part of your role involves engaging and collaborating with various stakeholders across the agrifood chain, such as agricultural cooperatives, retailers, and municipalities. Could you share more about these collaborations? What aspects give you hope, and what challenges do you encounter?
Our project model is built on collaboration across the agri-food chain to address the root causes of exploitation, which often stem from unequal power dynamics, lack of cooperation, and the absence of mutual respect. Our vision fosters alliances among workers, producers, retailers, and consumers, while also involving external actors such as institutions, civil society, and the Church. In some cases, the Church has provided unused real estate to offer dignified housing solutions.
One of the key challenges we face is an unsustainable economic model that enables large multinational corporations in food distribution to impose unfairly low prices on producers. This pressure forces cost-cutting measures that often result in labour exploitation and the rise of illegal practices like ‘caporalato’ (NB: informal and exploitative labour brokerage). By establishing agreements with retailers committed to fair pricing, we ensure that producers take responsibility for guaranteeing legal wages and decent working conditions for labourers. This approach helps rebuild the agri-food chain as it should be, ensuring both economic and social sustainability.
Consumer awareness also plays a crucial role in transforming the system. The No Cap label is a key tool in this effort, offering a clear certification for ethically sourced products and allowing consumers to make informed choices that support fair labour practices. This allows us to involve all actors in the food chain.
Collaboration also extends to local and national authorities to tackle urgent issues such as housing and transport for seasonal workers. The lack of adequate solutions has led to the emergence of informal settlements, so-called ghettos, where living conditions are precarious and unsafe. While the responsibility to ensure legal frameworks and basic services lies with the state, Chico Mendes and No Cap have initiated temporary solutions, such as dedicated transportation services for workers.
Our project strongly emphasises supply chain collaboration to develop a new model that is economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable. Climate change also exacerbates existing challenges, disrupting production cycles, reducing available workdays, and intensifying precarity for labourers.
However, the greatest challenge remains shifting the prevailing mindset. A balanced agri-food supply chain, one that ensures sustainability for all, requires a reform of the European market to combat unfair competition driven by exploitative practices. Collaboration is the cornerstone of creating a positive and inclusive transformation across the entire system.
