Dynamics of the Livestock Revolution: Marginalization and Resistance in Southern Brazil

Lundström, Markus

doi:10.1080/10440046.2011.539136

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 20 publications

(30 reference statements)

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“…Concentration has also been documented in related sectors, such as animal feed and meat processing. In the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, the top five pork and poultry processing companies controlled 63% and 85% of their respective markets in 2009 [142]. The Kenyan vertical integrator, Farmer’s Choice, is characterized by the FAO as having a monopoly on pork processing, handling 80% of the pigs processed in the country [90], while one Ugandan company is reportedly responsible for 85% of Kampala’s processed meat market and holds a monopoly over beef processing [125].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applying an environmental public health lens to the industrialization of food animal production in ten low- and middle-income countries

2019

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Background Industrial food animal production (IFAP) is characterized by dense animal housing, high throughput, specialization, vertical integration, and corporate consolidation. Research in high-income countries has documented impacts on public health, the environment, and animal welfare. IFAP is proliferating in some low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where increased consumption of animal-source foods has occurred alongside rising incomes and efforts to address undernutrition. However, in these countries IFAP’s negative externalities could be amplified by inadequate infrastructure and resources to document issues and implement controls. Methods Using UN FAOSTAT data, we selected ten LMICs where food animal production is expanding and assessed patterns of IFAP growth. We conducted a mixed methods review to explore factors affecting growth, evidence of impacts, and information gaps; we searched several databases for sources in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Data were extracted from 450+ sources, comprising peer-reviewed literature, government documents, NGO reports, and news articles. Results In the selected LMICs, not only has livestock production increased, but the nature of expansion appears to have involved industrialized methods, to varying extents based on species and location. Expansion was promoted in some countries by explicit government policies. Animal densities, corporate structure, and pharmaceutical reliance in some areas mirrored conditions found in high-income countries. There were many reported weaknesses in regulation and capacity for enforcement surrounding production and animal welfare. Global trade increasingly influences movement of and access to inputs such as feed. There was a nascent, compelling body of scientific literature documenting IFAP’s negative environmental and public health externalities in some countries. Conclusions LMICs may be attracted to IFAP for economic development and food security, as well as the potential for increasing access to animal-source foods and the role these foods can play in alleviating undernutrition. IFAP, however, is resource intensive. Industrialized production methods likely result in serious negative public health, environmental, and animal welfare impacts in LMICs. To our knowledge, this is the first systematic effort to assess IFAP trends through an environmental public health lens for a relatively large group of LMICs. It contributes to the literature by outlining urgent research priorities aimed at informing national and international decisions about the future of food animal production and efforts to tackle global undernutrition.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applying an environmental public health lens to the industrialization of food animal production in ten low- and middle-income countries

2019

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“…On that exact note the political economy of meat has also been critically evaluated; cross-disciplinary approaches are now questioning the scholarly belief that "small-scale livestock farmers of developing countries […] view livestock as a way out of poverty" (Hall, Ehui, and Delgado 2004, 426). Critical scholars point out that such a presumption countervails documented analyzes from farmers themselves; small livestock holders report being highly dependent on agri-food companies (Heffernan 2004), unable to afford the required technical upgrading which often leads to severe indebtedness (Lundström 2011), while at the same time having few options other than submitting to the vertical integration process (Khan and Bidabadi 2004;Millar and Photakoun 2008). Building on the fact that intensified livestock production requires expansive agricultural production for animal feed-approximately one…”

Section: Meat Production and Rural Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Political Economy of Meat

Lundström

2019

J Agric Environ Ethics

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This paper discusses variegated scholarly approaches to what is here typified as a political economy of meat. Identified as a multifaceted, transdisciplinary and most dynamic field of research, inquiries into the political economy of meat imbricate key issues of social and economic development, across the human-animal divide. While some scholars interpret livestock production as "a pathway from poverty", others observe deepened marginalization and exploitation. The argument raised in this paper is that concise engagement with multiple critical perspectives may facilitate further explorations into the social dynamics that characterize the political economy of meat.

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“…This "pathway from poverty" is particularly paved by large agri-food corporations that connect smallholders to previously unreachable global markets (Brown 2003;Waldron et al 2003). On the other hand, critical scholars have disclosed how small-scale farmers, vertically integrated into agri-food corporations, have become alarmingly dependent (Heffernan 2004); unable to afford the required technical upgrading, livestock smallholders, marginalized 1 3 from other marketing options, often end up severely indebted (Khan and Bidabadi 2004;Millar and Photakoun 2008;Lundström 2011). To cope with these undesired social outcomes, scholars viewing livestock production as poverty alleviation here concede to cooperative solutions, predicting that "smallholder livestock farming in developing countries will be driven by collective action" (Narrod et al 2010).…”

Section: The Political Economy Of Meatmentioning

confidence: 99%

“We do this because the market demands it”: alternative meat production and the speciesist logic

Lundström

2018

Agric Hum Values

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The past decades' substantial growth in globalized meat consumption continues to shape the international political economy of food and agriculture. This political economy of meat composes a site of contention; in Brazil, where livestock production is particularly thriving, large agri-food corporations are being challenged by alternative food networks. This article analyzes experiential and experimental accounts of such an actor-a collectivized pork cooperative tied to Brazil's Landless Movement-which seeks to navigate the political economy of meat. The ethnographic case study documents these livestock farmers' ambiguity towards complying with the capitalist commodification process, required by the intensifying meat market. Moreover, undertaking an intersectional approach, the article theorizes how animal-into-food commodification in turn depends on the speciesist logic, a normative human/non-human divide that endorses the meat commodity. Hence the article demonstrates how alternative food networks at once navigate confines of capitalist commodification and the speciesist logic that impels the political economy of meat.

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Dynamics of the Livestock Revolution: Marginalization and Resistance in Southern Brazil

Cited by 7 publications

References 20 publications

Applying an environmental public health lens to the industrialization of food animal production in ten low- and middle-income countries

Applying an environmental public health lens to the industrialization of food animal production in ten low- and middle-income countries

The Political Economy of Meat

“We do this because the market demands it”: alternative meat production and the speciesist logic

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