KALAMATA, Greece: Nestled amid ancient ruins overrun by vegetation, Nikos Argirakis’ estate in Greece’s main olive growing region usually has dozens of foreign workers toiling around his 1,000 olive trees.
This year, the 40-year-old had to ask his sister and elderly mother to lend a hand because of labor shortages brought about by Greece’s coronavirus restrictions.
“It’s how our grandparents used to do it,” he muses. “The harvest was always a family affair.”
Greece last month closed its border with Albania, the main source of its seasonal agricultural labor. Fortunately, Argirakis found an Albanian couple and two Bangladeshi men who were in the country before the new restrictions were imposed. Argirakis’ 1-hectare estate is in the Peloponnese peninsula near the city of Kalamata.
COVID labor shortage makes Greek olive harvest a traditional family affair again
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Going back to their roots » Borneo Bulletin Online
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Virus Outbreak: Virus makes Greek olive harvest a family affair
AFP, KALAMATA, Greece
Nestled amid ancient ruins overrun by vegetation, Nikos Argirakis’ estate in Greece’s main olive growing region usually had dozens of foreign workers toiling around his 1,000 olive trees.
This year, the 40-year-old had to ask his sister and elderly mother to lend a hand because of labor shortages brought about by Greece’s COVID-19 restrictions.
“It’s how our grandparents used to do it,” he said. “The harvest was always a family affair.”
A worker harvests olives in an olive grove in Aghios Andreas, Greece, on Wednesday.
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The olive harvest is set to last an extra month without seasonal workers on Nikos Argirakis farm ANGELOS TZORTZINIS
Pictures by Angelos Tzortzinis. Video by Will Vassilopoulos
Nestled amid ancient ruins overrun by vegetation, Nikos Argirakis estate in Greece s main olive growing region usually has dozens of foreign workers toiling around his 1,000 olive trees.
This year, the 40-year-old had to ask his sister and elderly mother to lend a hand because.
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Pictures by Angelos Tzortzinis.
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