The Interaction of Global Value Chains and Rural Livelihoods: The Case of Smallholder Raspberry Growers in Chile

TLDR

The study examines how global value chain dynamics influence rural livelihoods in Chile, integrating GVC and sustainable rural livelihoods perspectives. The paper investigates the evolution of Chile’s raspberry export sector amid its non‑traditional agricultural export boom and its significance for smallholder growers and rural households in central Chile. The authors map the geography and structural configuration of Chilean raspberry GVC, analyze governance and coordination modes among key actors, and assess how smallholder participation affects access to essential livelihood assets. The study finds that institutional support is essential for smallholders to meet safety and quality standards and secure market access in the raspberry value chain, despite the crop’s perceived small‑scale bias.

Abstract

This paper integrates aspects of global value chain and sustainable rural livelihoods analyses in an exploration of the local impacts of agri-food globalization in Chile. In particular, it examines the evolution of the raspberry export sector in the context of Chile's non-traditional agricultural export boom, and considers its importance to smallholder growers and rural households in central Chile. The paper first outlines the geography and structural configuration of the global value chain for Chilean raspberries, and considers modes of governance and forms of coordination between key actors within the chain. Second, the terms and implications of smallholder grower participation in the value chain are explored in a discussion of access to key livelihoods assets. The paper concludes that institutional support to smallholders, even in the case of a crop that is widely seen to have a small-scale 'size bias', remains integral to their capacity to comply with required safety and quality standards and gain and retain market access via the value chain.