Land, Work, and Value Among Transnational Soybean Farmers in the Brazilian Cerrado A
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"WHEN WE CAME, THERE WAS NOTHING" LAND, WORK, AND VALUE AMONG TRANSNATIONAL SOYBEAN FARMERS IN THE BRAZILIAN CERRADO Andrew Lehne Ofstehage A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Anthropology. Chapel Hill 2018 Approved by: Rudolf Colloredo-Mansfeld Dorothy Holland Gabriela Valdivia Peter Redfield Hannah Gill © 2018 Andrew Lehne Ofstehage ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT ANDREW LEHNE OFSTEHAGE: "When We Came There Was Nothing": Land, Work, and Value among Transnational Soybean Farmers in the Brazilian Cerrado (Under the direction of Rudolf Colloredo-Mansfeld) This dissertation is a comparative ethnography of two groups of transnational soybean farmers in the Brazilian Cerrado. In this exploration of migration and industrial crop production for global markets, the new capacity for highly flexible farming is examined in relation to the fixity of family tradition, religious practices, landscapes, and expertise born of working the land. In 1968, Holdeman Mennonites embarked on a tour of rural Brazil. In search of autonomy from an encroaching cultural crisis, they found cheap farm land in Rio Verde, Goiás and encountered a government eager for their migration. Decades later, a group of Midwestern family farmers toured rural Brazil and found cheap, expansive land to occupy. They courted investors (mostly neighboring farmers), bought massive tracts of land, and settled in Luis Eduardo Magalhães, Bahia. The two groups’ migrations began with experiences of crisis: for the Mennonites a cultural crisis in the United States that threatened their family and community reproduction and for the Midwestern family farmers a farm crisis which threatened their livelihoods. In Brazil they adopted common farming techniques related to soil fertilization and tillage, yet differed in crop rotations, use of technology, and most starkly in their perceptions of what counted as “good farming.” Each community internally contested identity and value as they made meaning out of transnational lives and industrial farming. These cases problematize how we understand large-scale processes of the South iii American soy boom, the massive expansion of soy production in South America, the global land grab, and the proliferation of global land deals. This dissertation identifies difference and generativity of farming in two communities of transnational soybean farmers while also recognizing the power and domination behind such massive economic processes. The Holdeman Mennonite community pursues an alternative to soybean development in their use of family labor, avoidance of capital and technology, and diversified farming practices. The community of Midwestern family farmers adopts capitalist managerial and farming practices, yet reconcile this with their values of good farming. Together they reveal areas of convergence and divergence that make industrial, transnational soybean production possible. iv For Arlo and Amanda. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation would not have been possible without the intellectual, social, financial, and spiritual support of friends, colleagues, and family in my life. My mentors and colleagues at the University of North Carolina have been my tireless supporters, both intellectually and personally. By good fortune I’ve been able to assemble a rigorous and astoundingly generous dissertation committee. In 2010 Rudi Colloredo-Mansfeld responded to an email inquiry about the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Anthropology graduate program with an invitation to talk over the phone and an enthusiastic invitation to present at a workshop in Chapel Hill on the “Market as Commons.” Since then I have benefited from Rudi’s enthusiastic support, steady encouragement, and patient guidance. Rudi has had the ability to see possibility and merit in my work and this encouragement has been invaluable. I am grateful for his deep and thoughtful engagement with my research. Dottie Holland has been a guiding beacon, not through directives, but through her surgical, curiosity- driven questions. She constantly reminds me of my own curiosity about this research. Whether meeting at Alumni Building, Whole Foods, or Weaver Street Market, I leave our encounters rejuvenated. Gabriela Valdivia’s political ecology course and continued engagement with me and my research have been driving theoretical forces within my work. I am grateful for Peter Redfield for our long talks in his office and for helping me think through and re-think my research. Hannah Gill’s enthusiasm, energy, and curiosity are infectious and she has been a welcome late addition to the committee. Anthropology department staff have shepherded me through the program. Miss vi Suphronia Cheek, Nicholas LeBlanc, Katie Poor, Irina Olenicheva, and Matt McAlister have played integral roles in my career at UNC-Chapel Hill from getting me enrolled in courses to filing dissertation paperwork, to making sure busy professors sign my paperwork. They have tirelessly helped me throughout this process. My department colleagues have engaged in thoughtful conversations that challenge me intellectually and bring me joy. Laura Gutierrez Escobar and Justine Williams took me under their wing as a fellow agrarianist. My cohort, Vincent Joos, Anthony San Luis, Liz Berger, James Nyman, Marissa Wojcinski Bruce, Jami Powell, Seana Monley Rodriquez, and Maia Dedrick, made my first year of core classes more than bearable and continue to inspire me. Bill Westermeyer, Ashley Peles, Maggie Smith, Orisamni Burton, Brittany Glarrow Chamberlain, Martha King, and many more fellow graduate students made department life an engaging and social experience. Erin Nelson, Caela O’Connell, Claire Novotny, Anna Semon, David Cranford, and Tomas Gallareta Cervera in particular, along with Anthropology spouses David Nelson, Beth Cranford, and Julianna O’Parks were a constant source of joy for me at the Nelson-Johnstehage compound. I have also found kindred spirits in the Geography Department in Mike Dimpfl, Eloisa Berman, and Pavithra Vasudevan. Outside of my dissertation committee, I have benefited richly from engagement with mentors across campus and outside of UNC-Chapel Hill. Arturo Escobar’s brilliance and kindness shaped my intellectual growth and understanding of universities and pluriversities. Colin Thor West and Charles Price have made me feel welcome in the Department and reminded me that we as academics can talk of things beyond publications and research. Early on in my research Joeffrey Hoelle, Ryan Adams, Jason Kauffman, and Brenda Baletti helped me think through research methods, goals, and feasibility. And thanks to Gustavo Oliveira and Susanna B. vii Hecht for introducing me to a vibrant community of scholars of soy production in South America. My academic career would not have been possible without a long line of educators and mentors along the way. At South Dakota State Meredith Redlin and Larry Janssen were formative influences on my early university experiences. Zeno Wicks III was instrumental in guiding me toward a career in academia and pushed me again and again to apply myself. At Wageningen University Pablo Laguna, Alberto Arce, and Stephen Sherwood taught me to be a critical researcher and writer and continue to play active roles in my life as a scholar. This research depended on generous funding before, during, and after research. The UNC-Chapel Hill Anthropology Department has provided me with teaching opportunities as a teacher’s assistant and lecturer. The UNC-Chapel Hill Writing Center supported me for two semesters. The Halperin Memorial Fund and Tinker Foundation were the first outside sources of funding that gave me a chance to begin research and the United Stated Department of Education funded a year of my education. The UNC-Chapel Hill Graduate School has funded both dissertation research and dissertation writing and the UNC-Chapel Hill Graduate and Professional Students Federation contributed to travel expenses. The Wenner-Gren Foundation, Fulbright-IIE, and the Latino Migration Fund generously funded my dissertation research. My research interlocutors generously gave their time to spend time with me and answer my intrusive questions. In particular, Ray, Jefferson, Lincoln, John, Scott, and Brian gave freely their time, help, and energy. My friends in Rio Verde, Camila, Ricardo, Rizia, and Ty made me feel at home. My dear parents, Bernard and Glenda Ofstehage not only opened up a world of possibilities to me, but they walked along with me on the unconventional and unpredictable path viii I took. Dad has patiently answered my questions about farming, crisis, and soil and Mom has joyfully trumpeted each step I have taken along the way and even edited this dissertation (any grammatical mistakes were surely made after her careful review). Steve, Dan, James, Pete, and Ellen have encouraged me along the way and given me a solid foundation of family support. Finally, Amanda and Arlo. Amanda has been with me for every step. She pushed me to email professors about enrolling in graduate school; she encouraged me to publish, present, and apply; and she has always been there when things get difficult. She is my dearest companion, collaborator, and comrade. Arlo hasn’t helped write this dissertation in any way, but he has reminded me that it is not the most important thing. Especially when he is hungry. ix PREFACE This dissertation is an original intellectual