A tipping point for agricultural expansion? Technological changes and capital accumulation in Argentina's rural sector

Abstract

Drawing upon a case study located in central Argentina, we analyse in what ways technology is contributing to the accumulation of capital in a context where prevailing strategies resting on farm‐scale extension are no longer effective. We identify two major technological phases that go along with changes in actors' strategies aiming at re‐establishing expanded capital accumulation. These phases allow a better understanding of the mediating role of technology between capital accumulation and the appropriation of nature. In a context of increasing depletion of agro‐ecological conditions, the call for a new wave of innovations can be seen as an attempt to restore that mediating role. As we suggest, this entails broader changes in multiple levels.

Soybean production in Paraguay: Agribusiness, economic change and agrarian transformations

“…Besides, every year, new types of inputs and machines are introduced in the market, which promise to expand yields per area, as it can be seen in field demonstrations exhibited in the main agricultural fairs in the country. As a result, it is increasingly common to find farmers who resort to services external to the farm in support of production, such as hiring specialized technical assistance, subscribing climate reports, participating in training courses on the use of certain technologies (from equipment to applications), hiring tilling and harvesting services (among farmers that lack machinery) and hiring finance specialists to manage the farm (as already pointed out by Cáceres & Gras, 2020; Gras & Hernández, 2013, Gras & Hernández, 2016; Guibert et al, 2015).…”

“…Modern soy production stands out for its high and growing dependence on products external to the farm, such as transgenic seeds (increasingly specific to particular environments), synthetic fertilizers (produced with new raw materials and formulations) and agrochemicals (a huge variety of fungicides, herbicides and insecticides), in addition to the use of modern machinery and equipment, such as tractors, seeders, sprayers and harvesters (C aceres & Gras, 2020;Gras & Hern andez, 2013;Gras & Hern andez, 2016;Guibert et al, 2015). By offering these products to farmers and buying oilseed, transnational corporations have assumed an increasing role and market share in Paraguay.…”

Capital concentration in and through class differentiation: A case study from Pampean agribusiness

“…Obviously, this tendency is subject to variations over time. After a phase of ‘easy farming’ (Cáceres & Gras, 2020, p. 83) for large growers in the early 2000s, international soybean prices dropped, yields stagnated, and cropland lease rates exploded. Firms then started to diversify investments and to introduce ever more sophisticated precision farming technologies.…”

“…Firms then started to diversify investments and to introduce ever more sophisticated precision farming technologies. However, not all ‘are in a position to “redesign” their agricultural business’ (Cáceres & Gras, 2020, p. 81), such that ‘new dynamics of concentration’ (p. 87) do not abate.…”

A cost-effective algae-based biosensor for water quality analysis: Development and testing in collaboration with peasant communities

“…One of the industrial activities which strongly contributes to environmental pollution is agriculture. In Argentina, the cultivated area has increased dramatically in the last decades, by means of the GMO crops, no-till farming and fertilizer/pesticide application (Cáceres and Gras, 2020). Despite the existence of regulations over these procedures, fumigation with potentially toxic chemicals is probably above the recommended limits (Mas et al, 2020).…”