Search results

AbstractThis paper examines qualitative data on class consciousness derived from a study of corporate restructuring and the impacts of layoffs in rural Ontario communities. In particular, the study examines how the rural environment might impinge on the development of class consciousness among the workers there in the context of severe economic stress brought on by plant shutdowns. It is argued that an ideology specific to a farm and small town environment plays a significant role in shaping their response to crisis. The more standard predictors of class consciousness such as age, gender, past union membership, and employment status are also considered. The paper aims to deepen our understanding of the seemingly contradictory belief structures of working class people.

Cet article examine la thèse selon laquelle l'agriculture capitaliste prédomine aujourd'hui dans l'Occident industrialisé. Une étude empirique des fermes dans le centre du Canada qui sont intégrées dans les entreprises agroindustrielles explique la complexité structu‐relle de l'agriculture et l'importance des caractéristiques du produit agricole pour définir 1'organisation de la ferme. Les données qui indiquent la longue durée et le volume relativement élevé de travail‐leurs salariés saisonniers (dont quelques‐uns du Mexique et des Caraïbes) employés dans certaines categories de fermes sont parti‐culiérement notables. Ce type de travail est important pour définir la structure de ces fermes. Ces conclusions contestent quelques généralisations nâtives trouvées dans la documentation sur la structure des fermes et suggère le besoin de repenser les analyses précédentes des répercussions des entreprises agroindustrielles sur l'agriculture familiale.This paper examines the contention that capitalist agriculture is coming to predominate in the industrialized West. An empirical study of central Canadian farms integrated into agribusiness operations indicates the structural complexity of agriculture and the importance of commodity features in defining the social organization of farms. Particularly notable findings concern the long duration and relatively high volumes of seasonal wage labour, some of it migratory offshore labour, used on certain categories of farms, and the importance of this labour usage in defining these farms in structural terms. These findings challenge the sweeping generalizations found in the rural sociological literature concerning farm structure, and in particular previous analyses of the impact of agribusiness on petty‐commodity production.

Abstract This paper is concerned with the restructuring of petty commodity producers in agriculture and, more specifically, the role of food processing firms in this process. Two mechanisms by which processors secure their agricultural supplies—corporate farming and contract farming—are examined in central Canada. Although fairly widespread, corporate farming by processors is slowly declining and is unlikely to have a major impact on petty producers. By comparison, this study indicates that, in the context of corporate consolidation, the behavior of food processors in granting production contracts to formally independent farm operators is furthering the social differentiation of the latter.

Cette communication se propose d'examiner le débat sur le destin des petits producteurs agricoles dans les sociétés capitalistes avancées. On examine ce problème avec une étude empirique du complexe agro‐alimentaire de la Nouvelle Écosse. L'étude a démontré une concentration rapide des industries agro‐industrielles dans la province, et le rôle important du secteur de vente en détail dans ce domaine. Nos recherches montrent aussi que les industries agro‐alimentaires préferent avoir des contrats direct avec les fermiers pour les produits périssables, et que ces industries jouent un rôle important dans la concentration d'exploitations agricoles. Une comparaison avec la situation en Ontario indique que les conseils de la mise en marché peuvent améliorer la situation économique des agriculteurs en négotiations avec les industries agro‐alimentaires.This paper attempts to shed further light on the debate over the fate of petty commodity producers in advanced capitalism. Arguing for a more comprehensive analytical framework, this problem is examined through an empirical study of the food processing‐farming complex in Nova Scotia, Canada. The study found evidence of rapid corporate concentration in food processing in recent years and support for the thesis that food retailer concentration is at least partly responsible for this. Preference for contract farming arrangements was apparent, but only in the case of especially perishable agricultural commodities. The impact of contract farming on producer independence is assessed. Some evidence of food processors fostering the concentration of farm operations also came to light. A comparison of process crop prices and contract conditions in Nova Scotia and Ontario suggest that producer controlled marketing boards can significantly enhance the economic position of farmers vis‐a‐vis corporate processors.

Factors encouraging the early participation of Nicaragua's capitalist class in the "reconstruction process," begun in July 1979; the crisis of 1980 and later events tending to diminish entrepreneurial-revolutionary cooperation.