THE FALL OF KARUTURI: HOW THE CRISIS IN THE ROSE MARKET IS CUTTING THE HOPES OF MILLIONS

The beggars try to force them on the street. In all the major cities of Europe, the number of makeshift flower stands open day and night continues to grow and over time they become veritable shops. We don’t notice it, but as the official rose market, run by leading Dutch wholesalers, grows with the increasing welfare of the western population, a barely noticeable trade has taken shape in the streets that has been for years by an Indian multinational, Karuturi Global, which organizes and controls the jobs of hundreds of thousands of people in an unexpected third world – from the thriving highlands of Kenya and Ethiopia to the greenhouses of South America. A market in which Karuturi has speculated unscrupulously.

In the horticultural market, the cut flower market is one of the most important branches of the economy, and its worldwide turnover is estimated at over $ 100 billion per year[1]. The greenhouses, where most flowers are grown, employ millions of workers[2]: Colombia’s flower exports, considered to be the best in the world in terms of quality[3], generate income for around 800,000 people[4], while in Kenya, the sector ensures the survival of two million people[5]. Guaranteed people – this is the country which, after tea for more than 500 million dollars a year, attracts the most foreign investment in the sector[6].

Most of this market, however, is elsewhere: according to the Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry 2012-2013, India ranks first in the world in the cultivation of cut roses with about 46.54% of world production[7]. Kenya ranks 5th with 3.58% of world production[8], but it is a key country for Europe: between 35% and 40% of roses sold in the EU come from high altitude cultivation in Kenya[9] and half of them are finished Dutch wholesale markets sell the other half directly – what beggars sell on the street[10].

Covid-19 and the global floriculture crisis

Farmers in the Gaza Strip (Palestine) destroy their unsold roses

Due to the measures taken against the pandemic, in a structurally weak country like Kenya, the unavailability of air transport, the sharp drop in demand and consequently the weekly decline in exports of fresh cut flowers, growers have forced millions of stems to close between March and May 2020[11] destroy which caused huge losses[12]. Kenyan farmers had to take serious cost-saving measures to survive: wages and labor were reduced[13], the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and the production of some crops were initially minimized. of the season. And you can’t reap what you haven’t sown before – it’s a year of production that has essentially been wasted[14].

It’s even worse in Palestine – a country with an economy already on its knees: between the crisis of the giant Karuturi (which had fueled the growth of local nursery production for years[15]) and the damage caused by the Israeli military[16] and some criminal organizations knowingly wreaked havoc[17], and finally after Covid-19, thousands of farmers are starving to death[18].

Despite the weak growth in demand, the flower sector in Kenya still faces major challenges. Certain cost reduction measures (and the increase in fertilizer costs[19]) have had an impact on the production cycle and have considerably affected the quality: fewer workers (in the sector where 100,000 people worked before the pandemic[20]) means fewer flowers and minimal use of pesticides and fertilizers make plants vulnerable to pests and diseases[21]. The rainy and humid weather made the situation worse. There is also a shortage of skilled workers (due to restrictions on the movement of goods and people) and now that the world market is slowly recovering[22], the Kenyan flowers currently in production are too few for current demand and it will take some time before these. Producers can once again reach their full capacity[23].

But the global market is getting around the crisis by moving – and it has moved to Ethiopia. The horticultural market in this country, especially the cut flower market, originated under the leadership of the socialist military junta Derg, which ruled the country between 1974 and 1987[24]. At that time, summer flowers were grown in state farms, but with the fall of the regime in the early 1990s, two pioneering companies in the industry, Ethioflora and Meskel Flower, began exporting summer flowers[25]. In 1997, Maskel Flower decided, due to strong competition from the sector, to direct its production and the resulting export of roses only to the European market, and together with Ethioflora received significant technical and financial support from the Bank Global and the Dutch FMO (Finance for the Development Organization[26]).

In recent years, Ethiopia has become the second largest exporter of cut roses to Europe[27]. In the past 11 months alone, a total of 77,000 tons of flowers and roses have been exported for $ 351.8 million, but there has been a significant drop recently due to COVID-19[28]. However, in recent months, demand had increased after falling in some countries in the European market. As of July 2020, revenue from roses and summer flowers was $ 32.8 million[29].

The Netherlands is the world’s largest exporter of cut flowers[30]. Dutch flowers are a fast growing industry made up of growers, wholesalers and retailers[31]. The Netherlands is the largest producer, but also a major importer for developing countries[32] and thanks to the huge Aalsmeer shopping center[33], run by a cooperative with members from all over the world[34], whose annual fair is an impressive draw, not just for thousands of operators, but also for thousands and thousands of tourists from all over Europe[35].

Holland, crossroad of the world’s roses

The Aalsmeer fair just before the doors open

The Netherlands mainly exports to Germany, Great Britain, France and Russia[36]. Cut flowers, bulbs, and plants are the fastest growing segments[37]. This is an existential challenge for flower growers in developing countries, as the focus is now on offshoring wholesalers to these countries[38] – although e-commerce developments are likely to have a positive impact in the Dutch floriculture market – with the possibility of selling directly to consumers without using intermediaries[39]. Countries like Ecuador, Colombia, Kenya and Ethiopia are Holland’s most important horticultural suppliers[40].

The crisis triggered by COVID-19 literally rocked the flourishing Dutch market. In mid-March of this year, the lack of buyers forced Royal Flora Holland, which manages the auction, to destroy more than 20% of the horticultural products in storage and prices were reduced by almost 50%[41]. In June, the loss situation in Europe between March and April 2020 recorded around 4.12 billion euros, or just over 10% of the annual turnover of previous years[42].

Individual states are trying to intervene as best they can to cushion the blow: the federal government has put in place major support programs to stimulate the economy and support entrepreneurs, but this has not stopped the German economy sinking into a deep recession[43]. In Belgium, all types of employment measures previously created are growing as the Belgian government has also taken a number of new decisions related to floriculture, such as the possibility for employers to apply for temporary unemployment on relatively flexible terms[44].

In the United Kingdom, where the horticultural market has suffered significant losses, albeit to a lesser extent, attempts are being made to reject requests for protectionism from internal operators with measures to open borders in transport and trade merchandise[45]. Even in France, the recent crisis has fueled the idea of ​​an autonomous market and a dream of independence from imports, but the French government rejects these demands and considers them unrealistic: in terms of aid, the government acted in the agricultural sector: 500 billion Euros to support producers and traders[46].

The great parable of Karuturi Global

Ramakrishna Karuturi, COO of Karuturi

A market of such impressive value cannot remain immune to major trade battles for long – even if the Dutch trading system prevents most traders from forming oligopolies: the thousands of members of Royal Flora Holland form a system of extraordinary market balance – until the Indian multinational Karuturi was born and developed in a very short time, and within few years, wherever Karuturi goes, it displaces small operators and creates a concentration never seen before on the world rose market.

The company started out small and was founded by avid Bangalore retailer, Anitha Karuturi[47]. Founded between 1994 and 1995, the company was registered under the name of Karuturi Floritech: In addition to cut flowers, it dealt with food processing (pickles) and information technology by setting up its first production unit near from Bangalore[48].

In 1999, the company created an Internet auction portal called Rose Bazaar.com to reduce the benefits of intermediation using the Internet[49]. The company is also building its second rose production plant near Bangalore, increasing the total size of the rose farm to 10 hectares[50]. In 2000, in accordance with the change of focus, the company changed its name from Karuturi Floritech Limited to Karuturi.com Limited. The following year, the group invested in a private satellite gateway and an IDC (equipment for the satellite connection of all operators in Karuturi[51]) as part of the Rose Bazaar initiative[52]. The company is licensed as an Internet Service Provider by the Indian Telecommunications Division and operates a private Internet portal which changes its name to Karuturi Networks Limited[53]. In 2003, the company became the most profitable rose grower and largest producer of roses in the country. The following year, Karuturi established a wholly-owned subsidiary in Ethiopia, Ethiopian Meadows Plc[54].

In 2005, synergistic production started on the processed food front[55]. A year later, in a positive escalation, he received the largest order for roses in its history from the last UK retail chain[56]. On October 19, 2007, Karuturi Networks took over all the paperwork needed to acquire the infrastructure and management control of Sher Agencies, Kenya[57] – a huge company with over 3,000 employees[58] who also sponsored one of the most powerful football clubs in the country, which went bankrupt with Karuturi[59].

In 2009, Karuturi Global received from CCA-Global[60] the Outstanding Achievement in Agribusiness Award[61]. The second largest flower farm around the town of Woliso in the state of Oromia was officially inaugurated and was acquired from the Indian trading company Surya Blossoms (Ethiopia)[62]. The Indian company is also launching a multi-million-dollar agricultural investment project in Gambella[63]. In 2010, Karuturi Global Ltd acquired 58% of the capital of Florista India Pvt Limited[64]. All thanks to loans of hundreds of millions of dollars granted by the banks because, in all the countries where Karuturi has widened its tentacles, Karuturi has received guarantees from governments too grateful for the promises of thousands of jobs and millions of taxes[65].

But sooner or later the debts will have to be repaid and new loans will no longer be able to be taken out to pay off the old ones… In early 2013, Karuturi Global came under close scrutiny by the Kenyan government for allegedly engaging in illegal market practices and tax evasion[66]. According to the indictment, the company slashed its selling prices sharply to avoid paying $ 11 million in income tax[67]. This fact will bring Karuturi Global Ltd to court, only to be found guilty of tax evasion[68]. On April 4, 2013, Karuturi appealed the verdict, made the case public and scared off clients and creditors. This time the Indian company won the case[69]. However, after a series of parallel appeals and trials, all of the group’s leaders, including founder Anitha Karuturi, were sentenced by Kenya’s High Court in July 2020[70].

At the same time, the Karuturi group, already facing many problems of strikes, staff uprisings due to poor working conditions and late payment of salaries, is facing a major liquidity crisis and enormous operational difficulties: business partners begin to interrupt deliveries; There is a lack of primary services such as water and electricity supply[71]. The situation is becoming untenable, the staff are starving, epidemics are to be feared because it is impossible to maintain acceptable hygienic conditions[72]. In India, family members are fighting each other in Court[73] – a sign that the giant can no longer be saved.

The fall of the giant

Strikes in Naivasha, Kenya

In February 2014, Karuturi Kenya was taken over by CFC Stanbic Bank[74] (part of Standard Bank), but the proceedings were ruled inadmissible by order of the High Court of Kenya and have therefore been suspended for the time being[75]. After a few days, however, the transaction was completed and CFC Stanbic Bank was able to appoint an insolvency administrator[76]. On September 30, 2014, the Dutch flower trading subsidiary Karuturi BV was declared bankrupt[77] while a Dutch industry source reported that Karuturi was selling its Ethiopian Meadows Plc flower farm to a Dubai-based company[78], later identified under the name of Flower Express FZE – another company of Karuturi Group[79].

At this point, the main company seems to have completely lost its stability. Burdened with debt and decimated trade, it looks like it’s over[80]. In April 2017, by order of the Supreme Court of the Oromia Special Zone, Ethiopian Meadows Plc returned 108 hectares of land to 131 farmers: the company did not pay the rent on time, in accordance with its contractual agreement[81].

In March 2018, the Phoenix group, born in Singapore, which was growing rapidly in the world and settling in Dubai, until then specializing in the production and trading of rice, announced an investment of 205 million dollars in Africa[82], part of which in Karuturi Global, and pledged to repay all debts in Kenya[83]. Rumor has it that the investment Phoenix promised was nothing more than a disguised Karuturi family maneuver – the fact is that the Phoenix Group declared bankruptcy in May this year, leaving $ 400 million in debt with banks, plus an amount that cannot be calculated for debt owed to African customers, suppliers and related companies… and goodbye to possible investments in Kenya[84]. In August of the following year, the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) initiated insolvency proceedings against Karuturi Global[85].

The Anuak Tragedy

Crops destroyed, fields abandoned: what remains of Karuturi in Ethiopia

The Ethiopian group Karuturi imploded in 2017[86]. However, the first reports from the NGO Human Rights Watch had already arrived in 2012 and reported very serious human rights violations and inappropriate practices against indigenous populations by Karuturi in the Gambella region[87]. HRW claims that Karuturi Global forcibly evicted entire villages (totaling hundreds of thousands) with intimidation, threats, rape, arrests, beatings and murderers – in cooperation with local authorities[88]. The entire Anuak ethnic group is deported, decimated and forced to starve[89].

Human Rights Watch condemns the eviction of all pre-existing crops of corn, sorghum (millet jowar), and peanuts from Anuak tribal lands in the plains of the Gambella region, forcing residents to relocate[90]. For its part, Karuturi Global denies the allegations, arguing that their company “operates only on government provided land and is exempt from any claims of ownership by the community / farmers. Karuturi respects the country’s laws and the concerns of the local population and, as such, voluntarily withdrew from the Baro River (in southwest Ethiopia on the border with Sudan) when the local community was farming maize and sorghum in these regions[91].

Both versions are true: Karuturi used the possibilities of the so-called villagization process. It is a definition that describes the (compulsory) resettlement of people in certain villages by the government or military authorities[92]. This policy is applied in Ethiopia after the ouster of Haile Selassie following a military coup on September 12, 1974 and the rise to power of a group of army officers known as the Government. Ethiopian Military (PMAC) or Derg: Immediately after his inauguration he sits down. Derg advocates the so-called “Ethiopian socialism[93]. In 1975 a great process of nationalization and redistribution began: businesses, banks, financial institutions, insurance companies, rural areas, everything was nationalized and then reorganized. Fields are granted to citizens (as owners) with plots of up to 10 hectares per beneficiary[94].

In 1980, however, Ethiopia was ravaged by a severe famine, considered one of the worst world events of the twentieth century: the UN estimates that Ethiopia’s food shortage from 1983 to 1985 caused an estimated one million deaths. and several million displaced people – after this crisis which has left Earth in the greatest poverty[95]. In 1985, the Ethiopian government began a resettlement process by displacing an estimated 1.5 million people from the northern regions worst affected by famine to the southern and southwestern regions – sparsely populated areas with abundant fertile land; However, the resettlement was carried out without real planning, using force and coercion, causing thousands of deaths due to malnutrition, poor hygiene and poor health care[96].

Over the years, the Derg regime has transformed the practice of resettlement into a structured villagization program, which aims to bring together farming communities scattered across the country into organized units of 200 to 300 families to make rational use of conservation. land and water resources, and promote efficient organization of the country’s health and education resources[97]. When the regime collapsed under the weight of famine, the war with Eritrea and Tigray (northern Somalia[98]), but above all commercial debts with foreign countries[99]. Initially, the new leader of the Derg, Haile Mariam Mengistu, decided to halt the resettlement operations for a short period[100], but then enter the cruelest phase of villagization[101] and even create a peasant militia to spy on and persecute those who show resistance to deportations[102].

The massacre is terrible and no one knows how many people have lost their lives as a result of the program[103]: the goal is no longer just to reorganize the lives of local ethnic groups, but to force them first to make room for multinationals. foreigners who promise to create new industrial companies through their establishment in order to refinance the regime – such as Karuturi Global[104].

These areas are valuable to the government, and when the Indian multinational reveals that it lied about its manufacturing and trading capabilities, Addis Ababa quickly responds: The government notes that Karuturi Global has reduced its large-scale manufacturing capacity, according to the companies which reduce their workforce of the land granted from 300,000 hectares to 100,000 hectares originally, then in 2015 only 1,500 hectares[105]. In September 2017, Karuturi announced his complete withdrawal from Ethiopia, but demanded compensation from the government because it “had decided unilaterally and illegally to revoke our investment and trade permits[106].

In the dispute, Karuturi receives support from the Indian government to start negotiations with Addis Ababa. In April 2018, Karuturi announced that he had withdrawn his case against the government and signed a new lease of 25,000 hectares, Gambella authorities said with an annex to the April 2019 circular to shareholders, even though the latter speaks only about 15,000 hectares[107].

What remains of the Cyclops

Abandoned Kenyan greenhouses at Karuturi Limited in Naivasha (2018)

After selling the African assets to CFC Stanbic, the founding family buried the hatchet and tried to save what could be saved. The company is still involved in a number of disputes for which it has submitted various resolution plans to judicial review[108]. The Karuturi farming group no longer exists in Kenya. In their place are only stretches of iron structures, once flower-filled greenhouses, now dark, rusty, and abandoned[109]. The group is opposed[110] to the UAE authorities’ refusal to cooperate with Indian justice[111]. The website (https://karuturi.com) no longer exists, although the domain is still active – as evidenced by the fact that a readable document is still available[112].

In any case, Karuturi Global continues to function as long as it exists: it is currently a company with a high debt load on its shoulders, but which has a flourishing activity. It is still a 284.5 million rupees’ business[113]. According to the latest financial statements, Karuturi Global has debts of 1.93 billion rupees due within 12 months and debts of 395.8 million rupees due to be repaid after 12 months. On the other hand, the group has a liquidity of 14.9 million rupees and a value of 1.29 billion rupees of loans with less than one year[114]. The liabilities thus exceed the sum of cash and (short-term) loans by 1.03 billion rupees – so that overall one can assume a scenario in which the debts could be repaid[115]. In this sense, time variables play a crucial role and the enormous debt undoubtedly paints a picture of grave uncertainty[116].

In the meantime, Africa heals its wounds and tries to start again. In Kenya, 150,000 people worked in the fields of horticultural production until 2015, over half a million including the associated market[117]. In 2020, sales fell 80% due to the pandemic and the Karuturi collapse as Europe, which was the main buyer, stopped buying[118]. The French group Carrefour has now arrived, slowly reactivating the cycle and focusing on blended subsidies (private and public) to restart individual farmers[119]. The state has set up a special agency, the Kenya Flower Council, which resumed contacts in the Netherlands and proudly announced at the end of July 2020 that orders for 2021, included the forecast for the marketing of Kenyan roses, obtained around 75 % of trade before Covid-19 and before the implosion of Karuturi[120].

In Ethiopia, the State endowed its EHPEA (Ethiopian Horticolture Producers Exports Association) agency with a generous budget, with which 72 farms overwhelmed by the Karuturi disaster[121] were initially taken over and orders for 2021 are being organized to reach 20% market share three years ago[122], thanks in part to a government support project that provides aid of up to $ 60 million[123]. As for Palestine, there is unfortunately only the FAO 2018-2022 program[124], which is generous, but perhaps not sufficient – but the local government does not have the strength to support the structural commitment. The Cyclops’ imprint will leave wounds that will take years, perhaps at least a decade, in order to heal.

 

[1] https://www.fairtrade.it/produttori/fiori-e-piante/

[2] https://www.fairtrade.org.uk/farmers-and-workers/flowers/

[3] https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/drugs-flowers-colombia-valentine-day-rose-boom-200213222918966.html

[4] https://www.colombia.co/en/trade-with-colombia/exports/colombian-flowers-best-world/

[5] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/57a08d49ed915d622c0018d5/R8077a.pdf

[6] https://www.fairtrade.it/produttori/fiori-e-piante/

[7] http://www.phytojournal.com/archives/2019/vol8issue2S/PartH/Sp-8-2-67-178.pdf

[8] http://www.phytojournal.com/archives/2019/vol8issue2S/PartH/Sp-8-2-67-178.pdf

[9] https://www.greenlife.co.ke/rose-farming/ ; https://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/16/africa/kenya-flower-industry/index.html

[10] http://www.farmlinkkenya.com/roses-farming/

[11] https://www.bloombergquint.com/politics/kenya-sees-2020-flower-exports-falling-by-half-on-coronavirus

[12] https://www.pri.org/stories/2020-05-08/coronavirus-pandemic-wilts-global-flower-industry

[13] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-africa-women/no-bed-of-roses-east-africas-female-flower-workers-lose-jobs-as-coronavirus-hits-exports-idUSKCN21T0AW

[14] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-19/kenya-sees-2020-flower-exports-falling-by-half-on-coronavirus ; https://www.fairtrade.org.uk/media-centre/blog/kenyan-worker-tells-her-story-of-a-flower-industry-devastated-by-covid-19/

[15] https://pure.uva.nl/ws/files/1685275/134095_thesis.pdf

[16] http://www.mezan.org/en/uploads/files/2565.pdf

[17] https://www.grain.org/media/W1siZiIsIjIwMTIvMTAvMTYvMTBfMzJfNDdfMjQyX1dob19zX2JlaGluZF90aGVfbGFuZF9ncmFicy5wZGYiXV0

[18] https://www.arabnews.com/node/1666046/middle-east

[19] https://www.floraldaily.com/article/9112072/a-challenging-year-for-the-kenyan-rose-industry/

[20] https://inspireafrika.com/en/the-growing-flower-industry-in-kenya/

[21] https://www.euractiv.com/section/africa/news/europes-love-of-roses-sends-ripples-through-kenyan-lake/

[22] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-19/kenya-sees-2020-flower-exports-falling-by-half-on-coronavirus

[23] https://elinkeu.clickdimensions.com/m/1/19440787/p1-b20171-d2c3d5a4b3df4e2abd0dc66e46ebb4c0/1/2/b7f7e16c-c29e-4999-9299-f5a5437560c5

[24] Alexander de Waal, “Evil days: Thirty years of war and famine in Ethiopia”, Human Right Watch, New York 1991, pages 230-234

[25] Ayelech Tiruwha Melese, Bert Helmsing, “Endogenisation or enclave formation? The development of the Ethiopian cut flower industry”, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2010, pages 44-45 – see https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8854/21883a0b257d7bb2e38667b47307d4c20b9e.pdf

[26] Ayelech Tiruwha Melese, Bert Helmsing, “Endogenisation or enclave formation? The development of the Ethiopian cut flower industry”, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2010, pages 44-45 – see https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8854/21883a0b257d7bb2e38667b47307d4c20b9e.pdf

[27] https://www.intracen.org/itc/blogs/market-insder/Ethiopia-cut-flower-industrys-success-story/

[28] https://www.corriere.it/esteri/20_aprile_03/coronavirus-olanda-gara-salvare-fiori-che-nessuno-compra-0e74692e-758e-11ea-856e-f9aa62c97d7a.shtml

[29] https://addisfortune.news/flower-industry-sees-light-of-day-as-europe-opens-up/

[30] https://www.flowercompanies.com/blog/netherlands-leader-on-the-flower-export-market#:~:text=Around%202%20billion%20of%20these,with%20the%20largest%20export%20amounts.

[31] https://www.statista.com/topics/3732/flower-industry-in-the-netherlands/

[32] https://www.statista.com/topics/3732/flower-industry-in-the-netherlands/#:~:text=The%20Netherlands%20are%20an%20important,in%20the%20area%20of%20Aalsmeer.

[33]  https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/netherlands-floriculture-market

[34] https://www.royalfloraholland.com/nl

[35] https://web.archive.org/web/20080102024143/http://www.aalsmeer.nl/00004.asp

[36] https://www.flowercompanies.com/category/export-NL

[37] https://primefeed.in/news/650527/netherlands-floriculture-market-report-2020-overview-with-product-scope-opportunities-risk-market-driving-force-industry-research-co/

[38] https://primefeed.in/news/650527/netherlands-floriculture-market-report-2020-overview-with-product-scope-opportunities-risk-market-driving-force-industry-research-co/

[39] https://www.royalfloraholland.com/nl/nieuws-2020/week-37/internationaal-digitaal-congres-over-herstel-van-de-crisis

[40] https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/netherlands-floriculture-market ; Ayelech Tiruwha Melese, Bert Helmsing, “Endogenisation or enclave formation? The development of the Ethiopian cut flower industry”, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2010, pages 42-43 – see https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8854/21883a0b257d7bb2e38667b47307d4c20b9e.pdf

[41] https://www.floraldaily.com/article/9199470/ornamental-industry-trying-to-survive-covid-19-frenzy/

[42] https://www.royalfloraholland.com/en/news-2020/week-11/corona-ministry-of-agriculture-gives-an-update-per-exporting-country

[43] https://www.royalfloraholland.com/en/news-2020/week-11/corona-ministry-of-agriculture-gives-an-update-per-exporting-country

[44] https://www.royalfloraholland.com/en/news-2020/week-11/corona-ministry-of-agriculture-gives-an-update-per-exporting-country

[45] https://www.royalfloraholland.com/en/news-2020/week-11/corona-ministry-of-agriculture-gives-an-update-per-exporting-country

[46] https://www.royalfloraholland.com/en/news-2020/week-11/corona-ministry-of-agriculture-gives-an-update-per-exporting-country

[47] https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/karuturi-global-ltd/infocompanyhistory/companyid-3604.cms

[48] https://www.business-standard.com/company/karuturi-global-6733/information/company-history#:~:text=Karuturi%20Global%20Limited%20(KGL)%20was,%25%20EOU%20unit%20for%20floriculture).

[49] https://www.business-standard.com/company/karuturi-global-6733/information/company-history#:~:text=Karuturi%20Global%20Limited%20(KGL)%20was,%25%20EOU%20unit%20for%20floriculture).

[50] https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/company/corporate-trends/ramakrishna-karuturi-worlds-largest-producer-of-rose-buds/articleshow/3400533.cms

[51] https://www.digisat.org/idc-superflex-pro-iptv-satellite-gateway-receiver-system

[52] https://www.indiainfoline.com/company/karuturi-global-ltd/summary/6733

[53] https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/karuturi-global-ltd/infocompanyhistory/companyid-3604.cms ; https://www.business-standard.com/company/karuturi-global-6733/information/company-history

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[56] https://stock-financials.valuestocks.in/en/karuturi-global-company-history

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[58] https://www.farmlandgrab.org/post/view/28196-the-ripple-effect-caused-by-closure-of-sher-karuturi-flower-farm

[59] https://www.worldfootball.net/teams/sher-agencies-fc/

[60] https://www.cca-global.com/content/awards/

[61] https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/karuturi-fructifies-further-to-conquer-overseas/articleshow/5280698.cms

[62] https://it.qwe.wiki/wiki/Waliso

[63] Elias N. Stebek “Between ‘Land Grabs’ and agricultural investment: land rend contracts with foreign investors and Ethiopia’s normative setting in focus”, Mizan Law Review, vol. 5, #2, Addis Ababa 2011, page 4 – see 72958-Article Text-160286-1-10-20120109-1-1 ; https://www.triposo.com/loc/Waliso/history/background

[64] https://www.goodreturns.in/company/karuturi-global/history.html

[65] https://simplywall.st/news/karuturi-global-nsekgl-seems-to-be-using-an-awful-lot-of-debt/

[66] https://www.intracen.org/itc/blog/market-insider/Tax-authorities-investigate-flower-farms-in-Kenya/

[67] https://viacampesina.org/en/karuturi-guilty-of-tax-evasion-global-flower-industry-giant-found-breaking-the-law-in-kenya/ ; https://www.grain.org/es/article/entries/4698-karuturi-guilty-of-tax-evasion ; https://www.pambazuka.org/governance/karuturi-guilty-tax-evasion ; https://www.hortipoint.nl/floribusiness/largest-rose-grower-karuturi-finally-brought-down/ ;

[68] https://viacampesina.org/en/karuturi-guilty-of-tax-evasion-global-flower-industry-giant-found-breaking-the-law-in-kenya/ ; https://www.grain.org/article/entries/4698-karuturi-guilty-of-tax-evasion

[69] https://viacampesina.org/en/karuturi-guilty-of-tax-evasion-global-flower-industry-giant-found-breaking-the-law-in-kenya/ ; https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/karuturi-global-wins-reprieve-in-kenyan-tax-claim-113121200541_1.html

[70] http://kenyalaw.org/kl/index.php?id=10671

[71] https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/thecounties/article/2000104203/pain-misery-as-karuturi-flower-workers-unpaid-for-months?pageNo=1

[72] https://www.farmlandgrab.org/post/view/23020-Karuturi-has-no-business-being-in-the-flower-industry

[73] https://www.legitquest.com/case/Anitha-karuturi-bangalore-v-acit-bangalore/12F7CF ; b’Smt_T_Vasundhara_vs_The_Registrar_on_9_February,_2017′ ; https://www.itatorders.in/assessee/smt-Anitha-karuturi-individual-abgpr1575e

[74] https://www.grain.org/article/entries/5054-karuturi-still-going-down

[75] https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/article/2000108060/taxpayers-could-

[76] https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/article/2000104613/receivers-now-allowed-to-run-karuturi-flower-firm

[77] https://www.intracen.org/blog/Karuturi-Global-is-going-down/

[78] https://www.grain.org/article/entries/5054-karuturi-still-going-down

[79] https://www.ide.go.jp/English/Data/Africa_file/Company/ethiopia03.html

[80] https://www.intracen.org/blog/Karuturi-Global-is-going-down/

[81] https://allafrica.com/stories/201704260312.html

[82] https://www.khaleejtimes.com/uaes-phoenix-group-raises-dh752m

[83]https://www.karuturi.com/uploads/1/1/8/7/118720540/phoenix_group_announces_investment_into_karuturi_global.pdf

[84] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-phoenix-bankruptcy/commodities-trader-phoenix-goes-into-liquidation-due-to-coronavirus-documents-idUSKBN22K1N8 ; https://www.arabianbusiness.com/commodities/446421-phoenix-commodities-in-liquidation-with-over-400m-in-trading-losses-reports

[85] https://www.thehindu.com/business/insolvency-proceedings-initiated-against-karuturi-global/article29095106.ece

[86] https://allafrica.com/stories/201704260312.html

[87] Human Rights Watch (Felix Horn, Laetitia Bader, Rona Peligal), “Waiting here for death: Displacement and Villagization in Ethiopia’s Gambella region”, Human Rights Watch, New York 2012, see – https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/ethiopia0112webwcover_0.pdf

[88] Human Rights Watch (Felix Horn, Laetitia Bader, Rona Peligal), “Waiting here for death: Displacement and Villagization in Ethiopia’s Gambella region”, Human Rights Watch, New York 2012, pages 25-38

[89] Human Rights Watch (Felix Horn, Laetitia Bader, Rona Peligal), “Waiting here for death: Displacement and Villagization in Ethiopia’s Gambella region”, Human Rights Watch, New York 2012, see – https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/ethiopia0112webwcover_0.pdf

[90] Human Rights Watch (Felix Horn, Laetitia Bader, Rona Peligal), “Waiting here for death: Displacement and Villagization in Ethiopia’s Gambella region”, Human Rights Watch, New York 2012, pages 12-14 and 19-24

[91] https://www.livemint.com/Companies/3cHjrTBXnZEEMPVFx0yqfO/Human-Rights-Watch-flags-Indian-agricompany-Karuturi8217.html

[92] Michel Fiszbin, “Autopsie d’une famine”, in “Corne de l’Afrique” vol. 21, éditions Autrement, Paris 1987, pages 94-99

[93] http://memory.loc.gov/frd/etsave/et_01_07.html

[94] http://memory.loc.gov/frd/etsave/et_03_02.html

[95] https://www.worldvision.org/disaster-relief-news-stories/1980s-ethiopia-famine-facts

[96] http://countrystudies.us/ethiopia/45.htm

[97] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resettlement_and_villagization_in_Ethiopia

[98] John M. Cohen, Nils-Ivar Isaksson, “Villagisation in Ethiopia’s Arsi Region”, in “The Journal of Modern African Studies”, vol.225, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1987, pages 435-464

[99] Getachew Woldemeskel, “The consequences of resettlement in Ethiopia”, in “African Affairs”, vol. 88, Oxford University Press, Oxford 1989, pages 359-374

[100] https://ricerca.repubblica.it/repubblica/archivio/repubblica/1987/02/11/miseria-socialismo-il-regno-di-menghistu.html

[101] https://www.hrw.org/news/1999/11/24/ethiopian-dictator-mengistu-haile-mariam

[102] https://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports/1997/ethiopia/Ethio97d-02.htm#P147_21636

[103] https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/05/28/heal-ethiopia-needs-confront-its-violent-past

[104] Getachew Woldemeskel, “The consequences of resettlement in Ethiopia”, in “African Affairs”, vol. 88, Oxford University Press, Oxford 1989, pages 359-374

[105] https://www.farmlandgrab.org/post/view/28998-karuturi-global-s-new-land-deal-in-ethiopia-must-be-scrapped

[106] https://www.nazret.com/2017/09/21/karuturi-demands-compensation-from-ethiopia-for-failed-land-deal/

[107] https://www.farmlandgrab.org/post/view/29010-le-nouvel-accord-foncier-de-karuturi-global-en-ethiopie-doit-etre-abandonne

[108] https://www.moneycontrol.com/company-notices/karuturi-global/notices/KG03

[109] https://www.theelephant.info/features/2020/03/21/unfair-trade-how-dutch-rose-growers-avoid-paying-taxes-in-kenya/

[110] https://www.valueresearchonline.com/downloads/stock-announcement/87FFD702-9993-4917-AFC8-161EC25C27CF/

[111] https://www1.nseindia.com/corporate/KGL_21042020234515_IntimationaboutrevisedFormG.pdf

[112]https://www.karuturi.com/uploads/1/1/8/7/118720540/phoenix_group_announces_investment_into_karuturi_global.pdf

[113] https://simplywall.st/news/karuturi-global-nsekgl-seems-to-be-using-an-awful-lot-of-debt/

[114] https://simplywall.st/news/karuturi-global-nsekgl-seems-to-be-using-an-awful-lot-of-debt/

[115] https://simplywall.st/news/karuturi-global-nsekgl-seems-to-be-using-an-awful-lot-of-debt/

[116] https://simplywall.st/news/karuturi-global-nsekgl-seems-to-be-using-an-awful-lot-of-debt/

[117] https://www.accaglobal.com/ca/en/member/member/accounting-business/2020/07-08/in-focus/cut-flower.html

[118] https://www.floraldaily.com/article/9226375/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-kenyan-flower-industry/

[119] https://www.accaglobal.com/ca/en/member/member/accounting-business/2020/07-08/in-focus/cut-flower.html

[120] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-kenya-flowers/kenyas-flower-industry-rebounds-as-lockdowns-ease-idUSKCN24M128

[121] https://ehpea.org/

[122] https://www.voanews.com/africa/east-african-flower-industry-wilts-sales-europe-dry

[123] https://www.floraldaily.com/article/9218599/ethiopia-secures-400-million-from-horticulture-export/

[124] http://www.fao.org/3/i8933en/I8933EN.pdf

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