The disjunctures of land and agricultural reform in South Africa: Implications for the agri-food system

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dc.contributor.authorGreenberg, Stephen
dc.date.accessioned2019-03-11T12:12:02Z
dc.date.available2019-03-11T12:12:02Z
dc.date.issued2013-08
dc.description.abstractLand reform was introduced in South Africa in the 1990s to redress the injustices of colonialism and apartheid. But compromises in the transition to democracy saw a trade-off between political participation on one side and continuity in economic structure and ownership on the other. Conflicting policy imperatives led to the subordination of land reform to agricultural restructuring, which was already producing the consolidation of corporate power at the centre of the agri-food system. Key processes included the privatisation of the co-operative infrastructural backbone to produce concentrated agribusinesses throughout the food system, trade liberalisation that benefited some agri-food sectors and saw the decline of others, and foreign investments and acquisitions across the agri-food system – most recently in the Pioneer-Pannar and Walmart- Massmart acquisitions. Despite rhetoric in favour of building small-scale agriculture, neither the land reform programme nor agricultural restructuring processes facilitated the realisation of this objective. Government tailed agribusiness in opting for a contract farming model to integrate selected small-scale black farmers into corporate value chains, which left the fundamental agrarian and agri-food structure intact. Government’s role in providing black farmers with finance, research and development support and extension services remain weak and enhance private control over the overall agri-food system.en_US
dc.identifier.citationGreenberg S (2013) ‘The disjunctures of land and agricultural reform in South Africa: Implications for the agri-food system’, Working Paper 26. PLAAS, UWC: Bellville.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10566/4489
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherInstitute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies, University of the Western Capeen_US
dc.relation.ispartofseriesWorking Paper;26
dc.subjectAgri-food systemen_US
dc.subjectPrivatisationen_US
dc.subjectSmall-scale farmersen_US
dc.subjectCorporate value chainsen_US
dc.titleThe disjunctures of land and agricultural reform in South Africa: Implications for the agri-food systemen_US
dc.typeWorking Paperen_US

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