ABSTRACT
Although genetically modified (GM) agriculture is posited as key for increasing food production, controversy has limited the global adoption of the technology. There has been little work, however, analysing the negotiation of biotechnology regulations in developing countries where disputes are related to different histories of agricultural change from the US and Europe. Guatemala is a key case to examine the relationship of biotechnology debates to the historical trajectory of Green Revolution technologies. While Mayan farmers increased maize yields by mixing local seeds with modern fertilizers, the Green Revolution exacerbated structural inequities underlying Guatemala’s agrarian system and heightened political tensions during the country’s civil war. This paper contends that biotechnology regulatory politics are integrally tied to concerns over heightening existing tensions between small-scale and industrialized farming systems as well as to more recent issues of seed patenting. The first section links contemporary agrarian issues in Guatemala to agricultural modernization during the 1960s and 1970s. I then focus on international biotechnology disputes before turning to Guatemalan debates over GM maize. With continued struggles over biotechnology knowledge, I further suggest ways to envision an agricultural revolution more closely aligned with the goals of sustainability and the needs of small-scale farmers.
