Amalia Leguizamón

Las semillas del poder: Injusticia ambiental en la Argentina sojera Elefante Editora, 2022

In 1996, Argentina adopted transgenic soybeans as a central part of its development strategy. Today it is the third largest producer and exporter of transgenic crops in the world. Its soybeans, modified to tolerate glyphosate, cover half of the country’s arable land and represent a third of its exports. Soy has brought with it modernization and economic growth, but also tremendous ecological and social damage: rural displacement, concentration of land ownership, food insecurity, deforestation, and health problems from exposure to agrochemicals. In The Seeds of Power, Amalia Leguizamón explores why many Argentines support transgenic soybeans despite the damage it causes. The author reveals how agribusiness, the state and its media and scientific allies deploy narratives of economic distribution, scientific expertise, and national identity to gain compliance from the most vulnerable rural residents. And it shows that transgenic soy operates as a power tool to achieve consent, legitimize injustices and silence possible dissent.