The management of the Oil Mill Cooperative Paladino of Palo del Colle, from Coldiretti – Unaprol to compulsory liquidation with lease to Federconsorzi 2 alias CAI SpA, continues to surprise. #VanghePulite.
1) Coldiretti – Unaprol and the Paladino Oil Mill
Unaprol ScpA, Italian Olive Oil Consortium, is one of the many realities based at Palazzo Rospigliosi in Rome, via XXIV Maggio 43. The historical headquarters of Federconsorzi and Coldiretti as well as, predictably, Federconsorzi 2 (alias Consorzi Agrari d’Italia, CAI SpA).
Oil Mill Cooperative of the Paladino Land Reform of Palo del Colle (Bari)- whose revenues once amounted to approximately EUR 8 million/year – leased the related business unit to Unaprol ScpA in 2020 at the vile price of EUR 16,000/year.
The olive milling and oil storage plant was then sub-leased by Unaprol ScpA to the ephemeral Oleum Italia Srl, in turn chaired by the general manager of Unaprol and president of CAA Coldiretti Srl. (1)
2) Compulsory administrative liquidation
The collapse of the large Olive Mill Cooperative Paladino forced the Ministry of Economic Development (MiSE) to declare its administrative compulsory liquidation on 10 June 2020. The first commissioner appointed revoked the lease contract stipulated by Unaprol with the cooperative at the vile price of €16,000/year. The big Coldiretti – Unaprol – CAI SpA circus followed.
2.1) Commissioner dismissed due to conflict of interest
The second commissioner, Roberto Falcone, was at the same time liquidator of AIPO (Associazione Italiana Produttori Olivicoli) Scarl in liquidation. And AIPO was part of UNAPROL, which had brought a multi-million dollar conflict of interest against the Oil Mill Cooperative Paladino.
Roberto Falcone moreover shared a professional office with Giuseppina Ivone, Unaprol’s lawyer. As well as with Fabrizio Di Marzio, head of Coldiretti’s legal department. The ministry revoked Commissioner Falcone’s appointment in 2021 due to incompatibility and conflict of interest. (2)
(2.2) Oil Mill Paladino and CAI SpA
The third commissioner, Gianluca Piredda, inaugurated his operations with a new contract for the lease of the branch of business of the Oil Mill Cooperative Paladino of Palo – at the equally cowardly price of €20,000 per year – in favour of Federconsorzi 2 alias CAI SpA, represented for this purpose by Giuseppina Ivone. (3)
Federconsorzi 2, a week later, granted the business unit of the Oil Mill Cooperative Paladino cooperative in sub-lease – once again – to Unaprol (through its Apulian subsidiary Cooperativa Puglia Olive).Which continues to be chaired by David Granieri, also president of Coldiretti Lazio.(4)
3) Creditors mocked
Almost five years after the start of liquidation, creditors for over 2.2 million euros of the Oil Mill Cooperative Paladino of Palo del Colle have not received even a minimal advance on the sums claimed.The liquidator also failed to publish all the periodical half-yearly reports required by Article 205 of the bankruptcy law.
The Coldiretti’ power system – Unaprol, whose management can be blamed for the bankruptcy in 2020 – continues to manage for 1,667 euro/month a cooperative that generated 8,000,000 euro in annual revenue.
In the meantime, the supervisory authorities have been asked to carry out checks on the activities of the procedure and the liquidator. Who, by the way, apparently did not publish any news about any competitive sales procedure.
#VanghePulite
Dario Dongo
Footnotes
(1) Dario Dongo. Coldiretti and Unaprol. The uncertain fate of public funds destined for Italian olive growers. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 6.2.21
(2) Dario Dongo. UNAPROL, AIPO and Oleificio Paladino, conflicts of interest spreading like wildfire. #VanghePulite. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 13.1.22
(3) Business rental agreement registered by notary Massimiliano Passarelli Pula, in Rome, on 28 December 2022 (no. 44323), having as its object ‘the complex of assets organized for the activity of harvesting, handling, conservation, transformation, marketing and valorization of olives (…) including not only any license necessary for carrying out the aforementioned activity, including the marketing of pesticides, but also the water networks, tanks and artesian wells located and connected to the following real estate complex’
(4) Dario Dongo. Coldiretti and Federconsorzi 2. The great olive oil festival. GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 4.3.24
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
