Chapter 3: Capitalization strategies and labor in agricultural machinery contractors in Argentina

Late modernity, understood as a socioeconomic and cultural component of advanced capitalism, is a global phenomenon that assumes specific characteristics at the local level. The individuation process, the multiplicity and juxtaposition of identities, the flexibilization of labor, hyper-specialization of labor tasks and know-how as an element related to power at all levels are some of the characteristics of this process (Beck, 1998; Sennett, 2000; Sidicaro, 2000; Simmel, 2002; Svampa, 2000). Not so long ago, land ownership in Argentina was almost synonymous with agricultural production. Today it is not. During the last decades, farming has developed through new forms of organization whereby factors of production such as capital, machines, transgenic seeds, and agrochemicals as well as specific knowledge have become not only essential but also have eclipsed land ownership as key components of production. Nowadays, the association between producer and landowner does not capture the status of farming. Instead, one of the most decisive characteristics of agriculture in Argentina is production through the employment of machine contractors.