The recent development of the family farm in the agrarian capitalism of the Argentinean Pampas

Abstract

The development of agrarian capitalism in the so called Pampas region of Argentina early involved small and medium-size family farms, immersed in commodities´ production for international markets. These farms had characteristics that distinguished them from the large producers in the region, mainly because the family origin of their labor. In its historical evolution, these units have transformed both their labor-productive organization and their family dynamics. This article shows these changes and discusses the difficulty for defining this social actor in terms of its past characteristics, at the same time that it seeks to understand its current distinguishing features. The methodological approach is qualitative and is based on the analysis of in-depth interviews with farmers, their sons/daughters and wives, and professional staff linked to those farms. In addition, secondary sources of information are used to explain the structural factors related to the expansion of production and the rise of the land prices. The research was carried in the area of Junín, at the northwest region of the Province of Buenos Aires.