Ever since the 1980s and 1990s, the Latin American countries have been mercilessly pursuing the agenda prescribed by “Washington consensus”. The prescriptions presented by the World Bank and the International 
Monetary Fund wanted poverty ridden nations to earn more foreign exchange, often to pay off international debts. As a result, the past 20 years have observed massive export of fruits, vegetables & fl owers from Latin America to USA. Since the production of cash crops like rose, mango & soybean earns huge profi ts - the big business has entered the farmland – squeezing out the small farmers and pushing them to the peripheries. In Chile, between 1989 and 1993, the area producing the staple food fell by nearly 30%, from 1.2 million hectares to 0.86 million hectares. Take the case of Brazil; in 1970, the soybean producing area was limited to 1.4 million hectares; by 1988, the cash-rich crop occupied 10.5 million hectares. Such stories have been repeated with impunity in other countries too, adversely affecting the food security of more than 200 million low-income families of the continent.
Monetary Fund wanted poverty ridden nations to earn more foreign exchange, often to pay off international debts. As a result, the past 20 years have observed massive export of fruits, vegetables & fl owers from Latin America to USA. Since the production of cash crops like rose, mango & soybean earns huge profi ts - the big business has entered the farmland – squeezing out the small farmers and pushing them to the peripheries. In Chile, between 1989 and 1993, the area producing the staple food fell by nearly 30%, from 1.2 million hectares to 0.86 million hectares. Take the case of Brazil; in 1970, the soybean producing area was limited to 1.4 million hectares; by 1988, the cash-rich crop occupied 10.5 million hectares. Such stories have been repeated with impunity in other countries too, adversely affecting the food security of more than 200 million low-income families of the continent.For Complete IIPM Article, Click here
Source: IIPM Editorial, 2008
An IIPM and Management Guru Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri's Initiative
Source: IIPM Editorial, 2008
An IIPM and Management Guru Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri's Initiative
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