ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the development of cotton production in more detail, as a case study of rural and regional change. Changes in the structure of production are analyzed mainly for the Costa Atlantica. Until the end of the 1960s cotton was produced in all size classes, although more in the medium-sized class than others. Until the 1950s, cotton growing in Colombia was fairly limited in scale, although its origins can be traced back to the precolonial era. The foregoing analyses show that the cotton growers' associations were a powerful force vis-a-vis the government and the textile industry, and it might be concluded that they were a key factor in the fast growth of cotton production. The chapter analyzes the changes in the structure of cotton production, first at the national level, concentrating on the interregional division of labor. The impact of cotton on the rural labor market has various aspects.
