The Role of the Mexican State in the Development of Chicle Extraction in Yucatán, and the Continuing Importance of Coyotaje

Bibliographic Data

ID3458177
AuthorsOscar A Forero (0000-0001-5679-4864, King's College London), Michael R Redclift, Michael Redclift (King's College London)
Year2006
Volume38
Issue1
Pages65-93
Publication date2006-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Latin American Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-216X • E-ISSN: 1469-767X
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0022216x05000295
OpenAlexW2114065364
LanguageEN
Citations received9

Most commentaries on the development of chicle (natural chewing gum) in the Yucatán Peninsula have emphasised the connections that were maintained between the chicle entrepreneurs and the companies, like William Wrigley's, which bought the raw gum for processing. The Mexican state is usually depicted as seeking to protect vulnerable forest workers from exploitation by foreign entrepreneurs and the vicissitudes of the free market. Our research, which uses archive material from Mexico City and Chetumal, interviews with former chicleros and entrepreneurs, as well as field research in Quintana Roo, suggests a slightly different interpretation. The Mexican state, far from contributing to the demise of personalistic relations (coyotaje) actually used these forms of mediation to manage and control the producers. The vulnerability of the chicleros to the full effect of market forces, their lack of physical and financial security, as well as corruption among some of the leaders of the cooperative movement, have all contributed to the continuance of coyotaje, often tacitly supported by state institutions. The article goes on to show that the need to meet demanding product and environmental standards, to achieve 'certification' as producers of a natural forest product, have compounded the problems of chicle producers today

Business · Demise · Economics · Economy · Natural resource · Political science · Product (mathematics) · State (computer science) · Vulnerability (computing) · Global Trade and Competitiveness · Global trade, sustainability, and social impact · Law

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