Dormex, a banned chemical substance, makes a comeback in kiwi farming

Food · Carlotta Garancini · 2026-03-10

The Ministry of Health has temporarily authorised the use of Dormex in kiwi crops in southern Italy. The substance has been banned in Italy since 2008 due to its toxicity.

Dormex, a plant growth stimulant banned due to its hazardousness, may be temporarily used in kiwi cultivation.
The Ministry of Health gave the green light to farmers concerned about climate change and foreign competition.
For Slow Food, the solution to agriculture's problems should instead be sought in agroecology.

The use of a previously banned chemical product has been authorised, by way of derogation, for the cultivation of kiwi. The product in question is Dormex, and the authorisation was granted by the Ministry of Health — a temporary green light for February and March in five regions of central and southern Italy: Lazio, Campania, Basilicata, Calabria and Puglia.

What is Dormex and why was it banned

Dormex is a plant growth stimulant that promotes vegetative recovery after the winter season: in practice, it regulates the awakening of plants when this is compromised by an excessively mild winter. It induces bud break and ensures uniform flowering and fruit ripening, making plants more resistant to pathogens.

Dormex was banned in Italy in 2008 and in the European Union in 2022 due to its high toxicity and the damage it causes to the skin; it is also suspected of posing a cancer risk and of causing damage to fertility, the foetus and organs in the event of prolonged or repeated exposure among farmers. The substance is also considered hazardous to aquatic organisms.

Several investigations have shown that Dormex was still being traded on the black market: last April, at the port of Bari, the Guardia di Finanza and the Customs Agency seized 40 tonnes of the product.

Dormex "against" climate change and competition

Italia Ortofrutta, which brings together 156 producer organisations, welcomed in a press release the temporary authorisation granted by the ministry for Dormex: "The authorisation represents a concrete response to the needs expressed by kiwi producers and allows our growers to have an indispensable tool to continue producing during this delicate period marked by climate change," the statement reads.

The ministry had previously issued a negative opinion on the return of Dormex, but it appears the authorisation was ultimately granted to support competitiveness, as Greece — Italy's main competitor in kiwi production — had already permitted the use of Dormex. As noted in Il punto di Coldiretti: "The fact that Greece had already granted emergency use for this farming season would have placed Italy at a competitive disadvantage in the marketing of kiwi, which is a crop of significant economic importance in our country." Coldiretti now calls for the identification of an alternative active substance of comparable efficacy that can be brought to market in the short term.

Sottile, Slow Food: "The solution must be sought in research, biodiversity and agroecology"

An alternative that, for Slow Food Italia, cannot be another chemical substance, but must instead be agroecology: "The new authorisation of Dormex represents a step backwards in the agroecological transition that European agriculture urgently needs," declared Francesco Sottile, lecturer at the Università degli Studi di Palermo and vice president of Slow Food Italia. "The difficulties faced by producers in the context of climate change and the resulting agronomic challenges must certainly not be overlooked, but the answer cannot lie in resorting to synthetic chemistry — especially with molecules that are controversial due to the health risks they pose to those who use them and to the environment."

For Sottile, what is needed instead is a determined investment in research, in the valorisation of biodiversity and nature-based cultivation techniques that allow farmers to remain competitive without compromising health, the environment and soil fertility.