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Latin American Steering Committee 2009
Name Organization Country
Susana Gauster IDEAR/ CONCOOP Guatemala
Carlos Aguilar Grito de los Excluidos Costa Rica
Germán Bedoya CNA / Via Campesina Colombia
Elizabeth Bravo Acción Ecológica Ecuador
Alfonso Rafin Veterinarios sin Fronteras Brasil
Margarita Salinas Action Aid Brasil
Raúl Luna Consumidores por el Desarrollo Peru
Alberto Villarreal Food and Water Watch Uruguay
Héctor Mondragón Grupo Agricultura ASC Brasil
Latin American Network Global Adviser:
Gonzalo Berron ORIT - ASC Brasil
Facilitation:
Magda Lanuza and Omar Argueta
The context of the struggle against agribusiness
For many years, it has been recognized than within the agrifood system worldwide there is a strong tendency towards concentration of economic and political power in the hands of few companies, mostly multinationals. These monopolies and oligopolies exist for the whole chain of production and distribution of food, from the markets for inputs (seeds, fertilizers, pesticides), agro-processing products (meat, dairy, grains, fruits and vegetables) and food manufacturing, to distribution through supermarkets and restaurants.
More notable than these enterprises’ ability to influence prices and affect public policies, is their tendency to integrate themselves vertically and horizontally in order to establish the hegemony of a small group of large companies, linked strategically to define patterns of production and consumption from the seed to the consumer's plate.
This trend towards concentration represents a fundamental threat to the interests of farmers, workers in every sector of the food system, consumers concerned about price and nutritional value of their food, and the very ecosystems on which food is produced. Networks and spaces are emerging in different parts of the world to encourage dialogue between farmers, workers, consumers and environmentalists, with the aim of coordinating their efforts to counter the negative impacts of the concentration in the agrifood system.
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