Description
Book SynopsisIn 1996, the Argentine government authorized the use of genetically modified (GM), herbicide-resistance soybean seeds. By the mid-2000s, GM soybeans were cultivated on more than half of the arable land in Argentina and represented one-fourth of the country''s exports. While this agricultural boom has benefitted agribusiness companies and fed tax revenues, it also has a dark side: it has accelerated the deforestation of native forests, prompted the eviction of indigenous and peasant families, and spurred episodes of contamination.In Soybeans and Power, Pablo Lapegna investigates the ways in which rural populations have coped with GM soybean expansion in Argentina. Based on over a decade of ethnographic research, Lapegna reveals that many communities initially resisted, yet ultimately adapted to the new agricultural technologies forced upon them by public officials. However, rather than painting the decline of the protests in an exclusively negative light, Lapegna argues that the farmers
Trade ReviewPablo Lapegna's book, Soybeans and Power: Genetically Modified Crops, Environmental Politics, and Social Movements in Argentina, offers a deeply theorized and beautifully written ethnography of how peasants and their organizations in the northern part of Argentina have experienced, understood, mobilized against, and ultimately accommodated themselves to the arrival of transgenic soy... Ultimately, Soy and Power is an excellent and intellectually stimulating read. * Rachel Schurman, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, American Journal of Sociology *
Table of ContentsIntroduction GM Crops, Global Ethnography, and the Dynamics of De-Mobilization Chapter One: The Dark Side of the Boom Neoliberalization, GM Soybeans, and Environmental Change in Argentina Chapter Two: Emergence Peasants, Politics, and Patrons: Rural Social Movements in Formosa (1970s-2000s) Chapter Three: Contention Peasants Confronting GM Soybeans and Agrochemical Exposure (2003) Chapter Four: Demobilization Peasants, Governments, and Constituents Across Political Scales (2004-2013) Chapter Five: Accommodation Peasants Negotiating GM Crops and Agrochemical Exposure (2009-2013) Conclusion: Companion Planting The Crucible of GM Crops, Global Processes, and Social Movements Appendix: On the Ethnographic Craft
