Agriculture in Chile

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Llamas in Lauca National Park
Agriculture in Elqui valley
Many of Chile's vineyards are found on dorp land within the foothills of the Andes.

Agriculture in Chile encompasses a wide range of different activities due to its particular

labor force. Some major agricultural products of Chile include grapes, apples, onions, wheat, corn, oats, peaches, garlic, asparagus, beans, beef, poultry, wool, fish and timber.[1] Due to its geographical isolation and strict customs policies, Chile is free from diseases such as Mad Cow, fruit fly and Phylloxera, this plus being located in the southern hemisphere (having quite different harvesting times compared to the Northern Hemisphere) and its wide range of agriculture conditions are considered Chile's main comparative advantages. However, the mountainous landscape of Chile limits the extent and intensity of agriculture so that arable land corresponds only to 2.62% of the total territory.[1]

Chile's principal

Bío-Bío River to the south. In the northern half of Chile, cultivation is highly dependent on irrigation. South of the Central Valley, cultivation is gradually replaced by aquaculture, silviculture, sheep and cattle
farming.

Production

Graph of the world export of cherries from 2012 to 2021, showing how this market has doubled in size and Chile's leadership.

Chile is one of the 5 largest world producers of cherry and cranberry, and one of the 10 largest world producers of grape, apple, kiwifruit, peach, plum and hazelnut, focusing on exporting high-value fruits.[2]

In 2018, Chile was the 9th largest producer of grape in the world, with 2 million tons produced; the 10th largest producer of apple in the world, with 1.7 million tons produced; and the 6th largest producer of kiwifruit in the world, with 230 thousand tons produced, in addition to producing 1.4 million tons of

olives, 106 thousand tons of cranberry, in addition to smaller productions of other agricultural products.[3]

Aquaculture in Chile

This section is an excerpt from Aquaculture in Chile.[edit]
Aquaculture fish farming in the Estero de Castro inlet of Chiloé Island
Mussel aquaculture farming in the fjords of southern Chile

red abalone, and Chilean oysters.[4] In terms of algae Gracillaria chilensis is cultivated and harvested.[4]

The main areas of aquaculture in Chile lie in the southern half of the country in particular in the interior waters of
Aysén and Magallanes regions.[4]

Wine

This section is an excerpt from Chilean wine.[edit]
In red, the "Ancient Chile" within the Captaincy General of Chile during the colonial era, the largest wine-growing area today
Chilean wines
View of Chilean vineyards in the foothills of the Andes.

aging. This led to a rapid growth in exports as quality wine production increased. The number of wineries in Chile rose from 12 in 1995 to over 70 in 2005.[5]

The late 20th century saw a large number of
Carmenère. Chile is also fortunate to remain free of the phylloxera louse, which means that its grapevines do not require grafting with phylloxera-resistant rootstocks.[7]

Forestry

This section is an excerpt from Forestry in Chile.[edit]
Pile of wood chips at Constitución.
Foresters of the Austral University of Chile in the forests of San Pablo de Tregua

Forestry is one of the main economic sectors of Chile, representing 14% of the value of the country's total exports. This places the forestry sector in Chile as the second largest export sector behind copper mining.[8] From 1970 to 2005 planted forest surface in Chile grew from 300,000 ha to more than 2.07 million ha.[8] In 2019 Chile had slightly more than 2,3 million ha of forest plantations of which 1,3 million ha were Pinus radiata and 0,9 million ha were of Eucalyptus globulus and Eucalyptus nitens.[9] In 2006 70% of Chile's forestry production went to export, and the industry employed more than 150,000 workers.[8] By 2020 people employed in the sector were down to 112,200.[9]

The wave of forest plantations that begun in the 1970s was initially a response to severe

conservationist critique had grown exposing the adverse effects of plantations on certain plant and animal species, on biodiversity and on water resources.[10] In many cases the establishment of plantations meant not reforestation but the replacement of existing forests with plantations.[10]

The growth of the forestry sector since the 1980s is the consequence of growth of the export-oriented economy in Chile.[11] Critics argue it has created an enclave economy.[11] In the area of Cañete and Tirúa forestry companies have been accused of contributing to the displacement of indigenous Mapuche communities.[12] In the last decades the communities of Temucuicui have had a conflict, at times physically violent, with the forestry company Forestal Mininco, leading to the detention and imprisonment of community members in the prisons of Angol and Cañete.[13]

Agriculture by natural region

Norte Grande

The

heavy metals from the mining industry. Some minor subsistence agriculture is practised in Loa River. Recently these waters are being used for growing non-edible plants, such as flowers. In Norte Grande's Puna plateau, indigenous Aymaras practise traditional llama and alpaca herding.[2]

Norte Chico

Norte Chico has a semi-arid climate that limits agriculture to the Transverse Valleys, namely; Choapa, Copiapó, Elqui, Limarí and Aconcagua. Most agriculture here is dependent on irrigation. Norte Chico is known for its production of grapes for Pisco and papayas. Other crops cultivated include olives and avocados [3].[citation needed]

Zona Central

wine regions. Most of Chile's premium wine regions depend on irrigation to sustain vineyards, the necessary water formed by melting snow caps in the Andes. In the developing wine regions along the Coastal Ranges and in the far south, there is not a lack of needed rainfall but vineyards owners have to deal with other factors, such as the Humboldt Current from the Pacific which can bathe a vineyard with a blanket of cool air. For the rest of Chile's wine regions, the Coastal Ranges serve as a buffer from the current and also act as a rain shadow. The vineyards in these regions are planted on the valley plains of the Andes foothills along the major rivers such as the Maipo, Rapel and Maule Rivers.[14]

Zona Sur

Wheat cultivation,

Araucania Region was known until recently as "Chile’s granary". Wheat in Araucanía continues to be the main crop; however, production of oats and lupine has increased significantly.[4] While the area devoted to traditional crops and natural pasture has tended to shrink in Araucanía, there has been an increase in artificial and improved pasturelands. This supports a substantial mass of livestock, including beef cattle, swine, sheep, and horses, and abundant production of milk and by-products. Salmon aquaculture is Los Lagos Region largest source of jobs and main export industry.[5] Nearly all of Chile's, and much of the southern hemisphere, blueberry and cranberry production is concentrated in Zona Sur.[citation needed
]

Cultivation and production of hazelnuts in Chile is centred in the south-central regions from Maule to Los Lagos. Production increased greatly in the 2010s.[15] In 2016 Chile exported about 6,500 tons of hazelnuts.[16] Chilean hazelnuts are described by Reuters as an alternative to Turkish hazelnuts that dominate the international market.[16]

Zona Austral

Lambs in Tierra del Fuego.

In Zona Austral, sheepherding has been a major industry since the 19th century. In the Magallanes Region alone, there is an estimate of 1.5 and 2 million sheep that is distributed among 300 farmers as of 2006.

Aisén, Chiloé and Palena) focuses on aquaculture and silviculture and is similar to that of Zona Sur.[citation needed
]

Evidence ranging from historical records, local agriculturalists, and DNA analyses strongly supports the hypothesis that the most widely cultivated variety of potato worldwide, Solanum tuberosum tuberosum, is indigenous to Chiloé Island and has been cultivated by the local indigenous people since before the coming of the Spanish.[18][19]

History

Main article: History of agriculture in Chile

Pre-Hispanic agriculture

Huaso in a Chilean wheat field, 1940. The picture illustrates some of Chile's two most important agriculture products cattle farming and wheat.

At the time of the arrival of the first Spaniards to Chile the largest indigenous population concentration was in the area spanning from Itata River to Chiloé Archipelago.[20] In this area indigenous groups practised glade agriculture among the forests.[21] The forests provided firewood, fibre and allowed the production of planks.[21] Agriculture type varied; while some Mapuches and Huilliches practised a slash-and-burn type of agriculture some more labour-intensive agriculture is known to have been developed by Mapuches around Budi Lake (raised fields) and the Lumaco and Purén valleys (canalized fields).[22][23] Pre-Hispanic agriculture extended as far south as the Guaitecas Archipelago (44° S), were indigenous Chonos cultivated Chiloé potatoes.[24] Tools are known to have been relatively simple. In addition the Mapuche and Huilliche economy was complemented with chilihueque raising, fishing, collection of shellfish and algae.[23][21]

Colonial agriculture

As the Spanish settled in Chile in the 16th century many cities were founded and indean labour partitioned among Spanish

Jesuits, Spanish officials and indigenous Mapuches.[26]

All mainland Spanish settlements (red dots) south of Biobío River were destroyed by 1604.

The initial Spanish settlers of Chiloé Archipelago (conquered in 1567[27]) attempted to base their economy on gold extraction and a "hispanic-mediterranean" agricultural model. This activity ended in a general failure given the unsuitable conditions of the archipelago.[28] Spaniards however reoriented their activities into logging Fitzroya.[28]

The

central valley which became increasingly populated, explored and economically exploited. Following a tendency common in the whole Spanish America haciendas were formed as the economy moved away from mining and into agriculture and husbandry.[30]

In the 17th century economy of the

self-sufficient.[31]

In the 1650–1800 period the Chilean lower classes grew considerably in size.

Santiago and Concepción) was overall more popular than joining a new city since it secured a larger consumer market for agricultural products.[35] Chilean haciendas (latifundia) engaged little in the supply of Chilean cities but focused on international exports for revenues.[36]

without Chile, Lima would not exist

— Viceroy José de Armendáriz in 1736[37]

Chile begun exporting cereals to Peru in 1687 when Peru was struck by both an earthquake and a stem rust epidemic.[32] Chilean soil and climatic conditions were better for cereal production than those of Peru and Chilean wheat was cheaper and of better quality than Peruvian wheat.[32][38] According to historians Villalobos et al. the 1687 events were only the detonant factor for exports to start.[32] The Chilean Central Valley, La Serena and Concepción were the districts that came to be involved in cereal export to Peru.[32] Compared with the 19th century the area cultivated with wheat was very small and production modest.[38]

Initially Chilean latifundia could not meet the wheat demand due to a labour shortage, so had to incorporate temporal workers in addition to the permanent staff. Another response by the latifundia to labour shortages was to act as merchants buying wheat produced by independent farmers or from farmers that hired land. In the period 1700 to 1850 this second option was overall more lucrative.[39]

1744 engraving published in Relación histórica del viaje a la América meridional. The image shows cattle in the Chilean countryside including a square for cattle slaughter.


The 1687 Peru earthquake also ended a Peruvian wine-boom as the earthquake destroyed wine cellars and mud containers used for wine storage.[40] The gradual decline of Peruvian wine even caused Peru to import some wine from Chile as it happened in 1795 when Lima imported 5.000 troves (Spanish: botijas) from Concepción in southern Chile.[40][41] This particular export showed the emergence of Chile relative to Peru as a wine-making region.[40]

Early Republican Era

The independence wars in Chile (1810–1818) and Peru (1809–1824) had a negative impact on the Chilean economy. Trade was disrupted and armies in Chile pillaged the countryside. The war made commerce a high risk activity and royalist Peru, then the only market for Chilean agricultural products, was closed to commerce with independent Chile. The Guerra a muerte phase was particularly destructive for the Biobío area and ended only to see a period of outlaw banditry (e.g. Pincheira brothers) occur until the late 1820s.[42]

The Chilean silver rush that developed from 1830s onward led a significant impact in agriculture as rich miners invested in the agriculture sector.[43] German immigrants that arrived from 1850 to 1875 pioneered the use of wage labour in agriculture.[44][45]

In the 19th century, access to the

difficult situation that Chilean economy was passing through in the 1870s.[citation needed
]

Occupation of the Araucanía
, that culminated in the 1880s, new lands were made available for non-indigenous agriculture.

Until the mid-19th century more than 80% of Chilean population remained rural working in agriculture or mining and was to a large degree self-sufficient to produce articles of consume.[51]

Starting in 1873,

Chile's economy deteriorated.[52] In agriculture this was seen as Chilean wheat exports were outcompeted by production in Canada, Russia, and Argentina.[50][53] As the victor and possessor of a new coastal territory following the War of the Pacific, Chile benefited by gaining a lucrative territory with significant mineral income. The national treasury grew by 900 percent between 1879 and 1902, due to taxes coming from the newly acquired lands.[54] British involvement and control of the nitrate industry rose significantly,[55] but from 1901 to 1921 Chilean ownership increased from 15% to 51%.[56] The growth of Chilean economy sustained in its saltpetre monopoly[57] meant, compared to the previous growth cycle (1832–1873), that the economy became less diversified and overly dependent on a single natural resource.[50]

The establishment of the

Pactos de Mayo were signed in 1902 and the inauguration of the Transandine Railway in 1909, making war unlikely and trade across the Andes easy. Governments agreed to sign a free trade agreement. Argentine winegrowers association, Centro Vitivinícola Nacional, dominated by European immigrants protested vigorously against the free trade agreement since Chilean wines were considered a threat to the local industry. The complaints of Argentine wine growers in conjunction with that of Chilean cattle farmers represented in Sociedad Nacional de la Agricultura ended up tearing down the plans for a free trade agreement.[59]

Tierra del Fuego and much of Magallanes Region did also experienced a fast growth of the sheepherding industry since the 1880s accompanied by colonization of the sparsely populated Patagonian grasslands.[60] In the South-Central Araucanía the Chilean invasion of native Mapuche territory caused the economy of Araucanía to change from being based on sheep and cattle herding to one based on agriculture and wood extraction.[61] The Mapuches' loss of land following the occupation caused severe erosion since Mapuches continued to practice large-scale livestock herding in limited areas.[62]

20th century

The 1900–1930 period contributed some of the largest growth of agriculture in the 20th century until the 1980s.[63] Despite this, conditions for rural workers remained harsh, with Tancredo Pinochet denouncing the poor conditions of workers in the hacienda of president Juan Luis Sanfuentes during his presidency (1915–1920).[63] Within a dual sector economic model the Chilean hacienda has been characterized as a prime example of a primitive and rural component.[64] McBride, a British who visited Chile in the 1930s, is reported to have been "astounded" to see haciendas with "agricultural methods that reminds of ancient Egypt, Greece or Palestine."[65]

Starting in 1953 the growth rate of Chilean economy decreased to an annual average of 0.7% but increased to an annual average of 2.4–3.0% in the 1957–1960 period.[66] The decline in the economic growth from 1953 was attributed by some to a neglect of agriculture.[66][67] The agrarian production in Chile contracted from 1950 onwards.[68] A government plan set up in 1954 to address this ended with meager results and in 1958 a new plan was presented.[68] That plan allowed CORFO to develop investments in dairy plants, refrigerated slaughterhouses, sugar refineries and transport infrastructure.[68]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ These cities were often in fact more of villages or towns due to their size.

References

  1. ^ a b The World Factbook -CIA, 2008-02-27
  2. ^ Chile en 2018, por FAO
  3. ^ Chile production in 2018, by FAO
  4. ^ a b c The fishery and aquaculture sectors in Chile
  5. ^ "Wines from Chile". appalachianvintner.com/. 4 June 2009. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  6. ^ OIV press report October 2015.
  7. ISBN 1-56305-434-5
    .
  8. ^ a b c [Chile: Forestry Sector], Patricia Jaramillo.
  9. ^ a b Daniel, Soto Aguirre; Gysling Caselli, Janina; Kahler González, Carlos; Poblete Hernández, Pamela; Álvarez González, Verónica; Pardo Velásquez, Evaristo; Bañados, Juan Carlos; Baeza Rocha, Daniela (2021-09-01). "Statistical Yearbook 2021" (PDF). Statistical Bulletin. 180. Instituto Forestal.
  10. ^ a b c "El bosque chileno". Memoria Chilena (in Spanish). National Library of Chile. Retrieved 2021-07-20.
  11. ^ a b Mapuche: resistiendo al capital y al Estado. El caso de la Coordinadora Arauco Malleco en Chile
  12. doi:10.1080/10714839.2021.1961469
    .
  13. ^ Rodríguez, Sergio (December 8, 2013). "Temucuicui, la comunidad que vive en alerta". La Tercera (in Spanish). Retrieved April 16, 2017.
  14. ISBN 0-7566-1324-8
  15. ^ "Hazelnut Production in Chile". Gateway to South America. 2015-07-03. Retrieved 2019-07-06.
  16. ^ a b Nickel, Rod (2017-11-02). "Nutella-maker Ferrero seeks to crack Turkish grip on hazelnuts". Reuters. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  17. ^ Mercopress - Sheep farming innovation in Magallanes Region 2008-02-28
  18. ^ Molecular description and similarity relationships among native germplasm potatoes (Solanum tuberosum ssp. tuberosum L.) using morphological data and AFLP markers, Jaime Solano Solis et al., Electronic Journal of Biotechnology, July 2007
  19. ^ Using DNA, scientists hunt for the roots of the modern potato
  20. ^ Otero 2006, p. 36.
  21. ^ a b c Otero 2006, pp. 21–22.
  22. ^ Dillehay, Tom D.; Pino Quivira, Mario; Bonzani, Renée; Silva, Claudia; Wallner, Johannes; Le Quesne, Carlos (2007) Cultivated wetlands and emerging complexity in south-central Chile and long distance effects of climate change. Antiquity 81 (2007): 949–960
  23. ^ a b Villalobos et al. 1974, p. 50.
  24. ^ Bird, Junius (1946). "The Alacaluf". In Steward, Julian H. (ed.). Handbook of South American Indians. Bulletin 143. Vol. I. –Bureau of American Ethnology. pp. 55–79.
  25. ^ Villalobos et al. 1974, pp. 109–113.
  26. ^ Salazar 1985, pp. 23–25.
  27. ^ Hanisch, Walter (1982), La Isla de Chiloé, Academia Superior de Ciencias Pedagógicas de Santiago, pp. 11–12
  28. ^ a b Torrejón, Fernando; Cisternas, Marco; Alvial, Ingrid and Torres, Laura. 2011. Consecuencias de la tala maderera colonial en los bosques de alece de Chiloé, sur de Chile (Siglos XVI-XIX)*. Magallania. Vol. 39(2):75–95.
  29. ^ Salazar & Pinto 2002, p. 15.
  30. ^ Villalobos et al. 1974, pp. 160–165.
  31. ^ a b c d (in Spanish) Villalobos, Sergio; Retamal Ávila, Julio and Serrano, Sol. 2000. Historia del pueblo Chileno. Vol 4. p. 154.
  32. ^ a b c d e Villalobos et al. 1974, pp. 155–160.
  33. ^ a b Salazar 1985, p. 49.
  34. ^ Salazar 1985, p. 58.
  35. ^ Salazar 1985, p. 52.
  36. ^ Salazar 1985, p. 88.
  37. ^ Quoted in Diego Barros Arana's História general de Chile, Vol. 16 (Santiago, 1884–1902), p. 74.
  38. ^ a b Collier, Simon and Sater William F. 2004. A History of Chile: 1808–2002 Cambridge University Press. p. 10.
  39. ^ Salazar 1985, pp. 40–41
  40. ^
    doi:10.4067/s0718-23762004000200005
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  41. ^ del Pozo, José (2004), Historia del vino chileno, Editorial Universitaria, pp. 35–45
  42. ^ Villalobos et al. 1974, pp. 406–413.
  43. ^ Villalobos et al. 1974, pp. 469–472.
  44. ^ Bernedo Pinto, Patricio (1999), "Los industriales alemanes de Valdivia, 1850–1914" (PDF), Historia, 32: 5–42
  45. doi:10.4067/s0717-73562012000100009
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  46. ^ a b c (in Spanish) La Hacienda (1830–1930). Memoria Chilena.
  47. ^ a b c Villalobos et al. 1974, pp. 481–485.
  48. ^ a b c (in Spanish) Economía chilena durante el siglo XIX. Cristián Sepúlveda Irribarra.
  49. ^ Salazar & Pinto 2002, p. 102.
  50. ^ a b c Salazar & Pinto 2002, pp. 25–29.
  51. ^ Salazar & Pinto 2002, pp. 133–134.
  52. ^ Palma, Gabriel. Trying to 'Tax and Spend' Oneself out of the 'Dutch Disease': The Chilean Economy from the War of the Pacific to the Great Depression. p. 217–240
  53. ^ Villalobos et al. 1974, pp. 6003–605.
  54. ^ Crow, The Epic of Latin America, p. 180
  55. ^ Foster, John B. & Clark, Brett. (2003). "Ecological Imperialism: The Curse of Capitalism" (accessed September 2, 2005). The Socialist Register 2004, p190–192. Also available in print from Merlin Press.
  56. ^ Salazar & Pinto 2002, pp. 124–125.
  57. JSTOR 2510493
  58. ^
    Cultural Anthropology
    , 12, pp. 234–268.
  59. ^ Lacoste, Pablo (2004), "Vinos, carnes, ferrocarriles y el Tratado de Libre Comercio entre Argentina y Chile (1905–1910)", Historia, 31 (I): 97–127, archived from the original on 2013-12-17, retrieved 2019-06-18
  60. ^ Martinic Beros, Mateo (2001), "La actividad industrial en Magallanes entre 1890 y mediados del siglo XX.", Historia, 34
  61. ^ Pinto Rodríguez, Jorge (2011), "Ganadería y empresarios ganaderos de la Araucanía, 1900–1960", Historia, 44 (2): 369–400
  62. ^ Bengoa 2000, pp. 262–263.
  63. ^ a b Salazar & Pinto 2002, pp. 106–107.
  64. ^ Ducoing Ruiz, C. A. (2012), Capital formation in machinery and industrialization. Chile 1844–1938 (PDF)
  65. ^ McCutchen McBride, George (1936), Wright, J. K. (ed.), Chile: Land and Society, New York: American Geographical Society, p. 177
  66. ^ a b Salazar & Pinto 2002, pp. 143–144.
  67. ^ Salazar & Pinto 2002, p. 145.
  68. ^
    University of Lund
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