Abstract:
This paper explores how neoliberal economic reform in Argentina has presented cooperatives with both potential for success and challenges to survival. The wine industry in Mendoza exemplifies the ways that some cooperatives in Latin America cope with globalization and neoliberal economic reform through centralization of decision-making power. In the wine industry, new standards in quality and consumer trends stress the fabric of these cooperatives trying to serve both the farmers needs and consumer tastes.
Many local cooperatives in the district of San Rafael produce basic table wines, even with the best varietals, due to less advanced machinery. They are cautious about making capital investments, weighing market unpredictability against providing more immediate member benefits. Their historical relationship to the wine industry is littered with booms and busts that coincided with national politics and consumer tastes.
FeCoVitA, the regional co-op and the marketing and bottling enterprise of the cooperative system, succeeded in pulling its members through the recent financial and consumption crises in Argentina. The increasingly competitive market challenges it to continue to buy from its member cooperatives while providing a quality product to consumers.
This research involved in depth interviews with employees and directors of three wine co-ops in San Rafael and at FeCoVitA, as well as numerous community members of varying professions, agronomists and the national agricultural extension agency. Historical data from the national wine institute showed the impact of the historical and political underpinnings of cooperative formation on risk assessment and benefit provision.
