El ensamblaje del glifosato: herbicidas, desarrollo desigual y geografías químicas de la ubicuidad
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14409/rdee.2025.2.e0076Palabras clave:
ensamblajes, herbicidas genéricos, redes de producción sur–sur, resistencia de las malezas, saludResumen
La ubicuidad de los químicos demanda nuevos modos de pensar acerca de los ensamblajes humano-naturaleza. Este artículo plantea un diálogo entre la economía política agraria, la investigación crítica de las cadenas de valor y las geografías químicas, por medio de un estudio de caso del agroquímico más ampliamente usado en el mundo: el glifosato. En los años 1980, el glifosato triunfó como un biocida benigno que prometía tanto seguridad como efectividad. Este constructo hizo posible un ensamblaje agrícola capitalista caracterizado por la omnipresencia química, primero como un remplazo químico del cultivo mecánico y desde los años 1990 como el insumo químico destinado a los paquetes de semillas genéticamente modificadas. La ubicuidad que caracteriza el ensamblaje del glifosato también es una geografía del desarrollo desigual que comprende redes empresariales, políticas y comercio cambiantes. Un aspecto central de este ensamblaje desde el 2000, aunque en gran medida ignorado, es la desmedida expansión de productores de pesticidas genéricos de segunda y tercera categoría, especialmente en China, para los cuales el glifosato es parte de la serie acciones de renovación y actualización de su estrategia de desarrollo. En este momento, la formulación del glifosato enfrenta retos sin precedentes por la resistencia de las malezas y por controversias de salubridad. Que el ensamblaje logre estabilizarse otra vez, y cómo lo haga, dependerá de los complejos retos ambientales y de desarrollo de la agricultura química, y del uso generalizado de químicos, cosa que destaca la necesidad de un diálogo transdisciplinario que se abra camino a través de esos dominios.
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