The Coffee Lands of Southeastern Brazil

Bibliographic Data

ID4862416
AuthorsPreston E James (corresponding author)
Year1932
Volume22
Issue2
Pages225
Publication date1932-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueGeographical Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0016-7428 • E-ISSN: 1931-0846
PublisherJSTOR (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.2307/209175
OpenAlexW2328698177
LanguageEN
Citations received5

UGAR, gold, and coffee have in turn ruled Brazil. Each of them dominated a period of history and was localized in a definite part of the country. One after another these products have supported settlement in new areas: first pioneer settlements; later, more elaborate and extensive settlements. But one after another the products have suffered a decline in importance, and with this decline has come a decadence of the settlements which were based on them. None of these areas of settlement has reached the advanced stage of adjustment and close attachment to the land that gives the occupation security and permanence. The last of these commodities is coffee. The story of its phenomenal growth, especially during the last forty years, is an epic. The series of maps in Figure I presents the story of experimentation and elaboration during the spread of coffee over this chief area of its production.1 Any interpretation of the areas of settlement that focus on the great cities of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, both of them having a population of more than a million, must deal mainly with the rise of coffee: for on the wealth this crop has brought to southeastern Brazil is based the growth of these urban centers. Since the growers of coffee, especially in recent years, have controlled the government of Brazil, unchecked by the interests of any other important economic group, the industry has been artificially aided and stimulated for the sake of immediate gain. This has been accomplished chiefly through valorization, the history of which is well known.2 First used in I906 to help the growers over a temporary difficulty, it was supplemented by restrictions of planting. Later valorization was used again with less attention to restriction, and finally, by the law of I922, it was made a permanent feature of the industry. Relaxation

Agroforestry · Geography · Environmental Science · Forestry · Global trade, sustainability, and social impact · Rural Development and Agriculture · Urban Development and Societal Issues

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