Agricultural production and public policy in Northern Calchaquí Valley (Cachi)

Abstract

The Cachi Department is located in the center-west of the Province of Salta, in the north of Calchaquí Valley. Most of its people live in rural areas and make their living off irrigated agriculture. The historical, cultural, social, and environmental features configure a particular organization of campesino production that is manifest, among other things, in the type of crops produced and their destinies, forms of work, and the relations of producers to one another and to the earth, etc… Within this framework, we explore campesino agrarian production in the Cachi Department and its articulation with the public policies aimed at the sector. To do this, we employ bibliographic sources, including state records and web sites, the works different authors that have researched the issue, and information gleaned from interviews and participant observation collected in the course of fieldwork in the area. We argue that the design and execution of public policies must consider the local reality and the needs of the producers that will benefit from them.