‘More soy on fewer farms’ in Paraguay: challenging neoliberal agriculture's claims to sustainability

Abstract

The knowledge claims of sustainable commodity discourses are often presented as ‘fact’ in policy debates. Such claims, however, are better understood as coproduced with neoliberal values and power, in the context of ‘more soy on fewer farms’ – the concentration of land and productive resources – in Paraguay. I analyze five claims that link ‘responsible soy’ to reduced deforestation, good agricultural practices, national economic growth, increased food security and public participation in soy governance. I examine ways in which each of these claims is contingent and contested. With an explicit commitment to equity, I argue that alternatives to ‘responsible soy’, that include rather than exclude small-scale producers in Paraguay's agricultural development trajectory, are likely to culminate in stronger claims to sustainability by redressing the equity issues that have been marginalized by neoliberal agriculture.

Key words:

• sustainable commodities
• neoliberal agriculture investment
• sustainability and equity

Notes

¹A complete list can be found on the RTRS webpage (www.responsiblesoy.org) under ‘membership’.

²Translated by the author from the following: ‘El 90 percent del valor de las exportaciones de 1995 corresponden al sector agrícola y ganadero. El modelo agro exportador ha favorecido el monocultivo, principalmente de algodón en parcelas reducidas de pequeños agricultores, y de soja, en fincas de nivel empresarial. Sin embargo, este modelo agro exportador ha sido el responsable del desaliento de la diversificación agrícola y de la disminución de la producción de cultivos para autoconsumo de los pequeños agricultores'.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Laureen Elgert

Laureen Elgert is an assistant professor of environmental policy and international development at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), in Worcester, Massachusetts. She is trained in anthropology (BA, Trent University, Canada), public health (MSc, University of Alberta, Canada) and international development studies (PhD, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK). Laureen's research focuses on the complex interface between knowledge, policy, practice and outcomes in environmental governance with an empirical focus on protected areas, sustainable commodity certification, farming systems and agriculture and sustainability indicators. She examines themes such as the politics of sustainability, environmental expertise and evidence-based policy, and the trade-offs and synergies between local livelihoods and global environmental outcomes. Laureen has worked internationally, with much of her research focused on Central and South America (Paraguay, Brazil, Guatemala). Her current research interests include urban sustainability indicators in the US, and ‘climate-smart’ urban agriculture and food security. Email: [email protected]