User:Natesantjs9/Puerto Rico

Agriculture
Before Puerto Rico was possessed by the United States, the country lacked equitable access to food. The island was dependent on a restricted amount of imported goods to aid the growing population. Alongside the shift in colonial rule, the island shifted its focus to sugar production. This move coupled with an increase in taxes and decreased credit accessibility started a change in labor participation and practices. Puerto Rico's shift towards sugar production also led to many Puerto Ricans being reliant on low wages that forced most families into poverty. In an effort by the United States to alleviate these problems, a push for industrialization through the 1940's and 1950's ensued. The industrialization was backed by the "Operation Bootstrap" program that encouraged United States firms to create manufacturing plants. These manufacturing plants prospered as there were little to no taxes placed on them for a decade. As a result of Puerto Rico's industrialization, sugar and tobacco farming, including farmers, started to collapse. "Operation Bootstrap" wasn't successful in helping lift Puerto Ricans out of poverty, unemployment, or creating a stronger industrial and agricultural sector. The undercutting of Puerto Rican farming and agriculture continued in the 1970's as the government chose to prioritize larger farms that produced more profitable goods that could be exported instead of investing in small or mid-sized farms. Consumption-based businesses found more success in Puerto Rico during this time, making Puerto Rico and its people dependent on different sources of money from the United States, like transfer payments. In the case of transfer payments, its share of personal income of Puerto Ricans increased from 12 percent in 1950 to 30 percent by 1980. Puerto Rico became a powerful consumer but lost it's ability to produce. By the year 2000, agriculture made up less than one percent of Puerto Rico's gross domestic product (GDP), despite its tropical climate.

In an effort for Puerto Ricans to achieve some sovereignty over its food and farming system, sustainable agriculture organizations started to develop. One of the first notable organizations to start this movement, was The Association of Small Farmers of Rabanal (APARI) in the 1980's. APARI had several goals including protecting access to farms for local Puerto Ricans and affordable housing. The response was quick and violent as local developers who wanted to use the land for their own endeavors were also members of powerful political parties that sought to stop APARI and other sustainable food organizations. The violence included the killing of farm animals and poisoning of crops. In the face of this violence, APARI survived and still continues to organize.

Women's Involvement
Following the efforts of APARI, the Madre Tierra Organic Cooperative was formed. Adelita Rosa-Garcia, the creator of the Madre Tierra Organic Cooperative, was inspired by her own spiritual journey which laid the framework for the cooperative's ambitions. Her concerns were a mix of social and material as she wanted to develop a connection between Puerto Ricans and their land as well as foster a space for vendors through farmers' markets. Her work is notable as it was uncommon for Puerto Rican women at the time to engage in the Puerto Rican agricultural sector so prominently, as it has always been a male dominated field. Rosa-Garcia centered around a Taino style of leadership with a mission for the "defense of and love for Mother Earth". The Madre Tierra Organic Cooperative exists to this day. In the wake of Hurricane Maria and following in the footsteps of the Madre Tierra Organic Cooperative, several female-led agro-ecological projects have materialized. Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico's agriculture; it unleashed an estimated 288 million dollars of agricultural production losses. One organization, named Agroempresarias de Puerto Rico focuses on educational seminars and talks to bring about more female participation in farming. The focus of these projects have been to shift the dependence on exported goods to local produce by strengthening the infrastructure of small farms. The increase in female participation and women led organizations showcases a growing desire for women to change their economic circumstances and autonomy within the Puerto Rican food system.