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The Role of Agriculture in International Relations and the Construction of the Agribusiness Concept

Abstract

The article analyzes the role of agriculture in international relations, particularly since the worldwide dissemination of the production model called agribusiness. The concept of agribusiness is related to a series of measures implemented by governments and private institutions, which intensified the industrialization and standardization of agriculture internationally. After the Second World War, the United States expanded the agricultural markets, as well as the industrialization of agriculture. The increasing productivity of grains generated greater demands for investments to cover the costs of mechanization, which resulted in the need to create several governmental policies of internal subsidies, as well as for export. The mechanization and the use of petro-chemical inputs increased the cost of agricultural production based on mono-cropping, generating debt for the sector. State support for agribusiness resulted in higher capital concentration, which can be verified by the role of multinational corporations, especially in the market of agriculture inputs and in the international trade of commodities.

International Market; Industrialization of Agriculture; Agribusiness; Commodities

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