Spatial Configurations of Argentine Agriculture.

Analysis of Social Structures in Argentina Using High-Resolution Data (2018–2020)

Abstract

This paper aims to identify the different concrete agrarian social structures that currently exist within Argentina’s social formation. Previous approaches were based on information from census sources (population and agricultural censuses), but such analyses were limited to the departmental level due to the way some census data were presented. However, the later publication of two novel data sources makes it possible to overcome these limitations—although they also introduce new challenges. These sources are: the database of Family Farming Units (Núcleos de Agricultura Familiar, NAFs), covering the period 2009–2018, produced by the former Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries; and the table of agricultural establishments that employed at least one wage laborer in 2020, drawn from the Productive Map, produced by the Center for Production Studies, formerly under the Ministry of Production. Both sources provide information on the specific spatial location of agricultural units situated at opposite ends of the agrarian spectrum: small family units receiving some form of state assistance, and establishments employing varying numbers of wage workers, which can serve as a proxy indicator of their size.
Using a tessellation of Argentina’s territory into 5 km² hexagons, this study analyzes (through dimensionality reduction and clustering techniques) the spatial articulation of different types of agricultural producers at this fine-grained level, resulting in an updated typology of concrete agrarian structures. The study identifies seven microstructures, each with distinct compositions and linkages among productive forms, distributed across two broad social territories. These territories differ in the prevalence of a group of producers (and workers) who face serious difficulties in meeting basic subsistence conditions.