Extraction and purchase of maguey mezcalero for tequila production

In 1980, for the first time, the tequila industrialists carried out the extraction and purchase of maguey mezcalero in the MR (without modifying the ^{NOM 006-SCFI-1994}, which points to the use of Agave tequilana Weber maguey), suspending this activity and abandoning the region due to the inconformity of the mezcal producers and the government intervention in the state of Oaxaca (^{Antonio and Terán, 2008b}; ^{Antonio et al., 2015}) by disarticulating the mezcal production chain because of the lack of supply and rise in prices of the raw material for its elaboration. The information obtained from the interviews with producer peasants highlights that the extraction and purchase of maguey by tequila producers began in the District of Yautepec at better prices than in the regional market, leaving the raw material out of reach for mezcal producers (^{Antonio and Ramírez, 2008a}; ^{Antonio and Smit, 2012}; and ^{Antonio et al., 2015}). It coincided with a prolonged drought cycle for rainfed agriculture, causing the decrease in sowing of maguey mezcalero in the region. After the period of interruption of almost twenty years, tequila producers returned to the MR in November 2000 to continue with the purchase of maguey mezcalero (with the modification of the ^{NOM 006-SCFI-1994} to use sugars from other maguey species). ^{Boffil (2004)} highlights that they also went into Yucatán to purchase henequen (Agave Fourcroydes) to face the expansion of the global tequila market and, according to ^{Pérez and Echánove (2006)}, related with the elimination of fees in the international market when favoring exportation, but also with unfavorable effects in other sectors, such as coffee production which in 1989 caused overproduction in México.

In 1999 to 2003, 300 thousand tons of maguey pines came out of the MR in various states of maturity, sown in approximately 10 thousand hectares (^{Fundación PRODUCE Oaxaca, 2007}), surface that increased 35 % since 2000 because of the increase in the price of maguey mezcalero by tequila producers (^{Antonio, 2004}). The information from the surveys applied to the sample of peasants estimates that 70 % of maguey traded came from the district of Yautepec that opted for selling to tequila producers and not to mezcal producers, when reaching prices in the regional market up to four times higher ($4000.00/t) than the one paid by mezcal producers. The prices became a powerful factor to sell to tequila producers because of the conditions of cash payment, in addition to not performing the selection of raw material, as the mezcal producers do, who prefer the maguey with a high degree of maturity (known as maguey “capón”) at a price of no more than $1000.00/t and in deferred payments. The improvement in the prices and conditions of sale fostered maguey sowing in the region; 80 % of the peasant domestic units in Matatlán and El Camarón intensified maguey cultivation in agricultural surfaces of one hectare in average, similar data to those reported by ^{Antonio (2004)} and ^{Antonio and Ramírez (2008a)}. The agricultural surface of maguey mezcalero in the MR estimated through information from the interviews and surveys applied to peasants is more than 15 thousand hectares, surface similar to what is reported by ^{Fundación PRODUCE Oaxaca (2007)}, which also indicates that the cultivation increased in Zaachila, Etla, the region in the Mixteca, Nochixtlán (San Pedro Teozacoalco and surroundingss), Huajuapan, Silacayoapan, Distrito de Teposcolula, and part of the region of the ravine, communities that do not make up the MR but which because of the demand and better prices opted for sowing maguey mezcalero as an option of agricultural crop.

The indicators from the Maguey Mezcal Product System in Oaxaca (Sistema Producto Maguey Mezcal en Oaxaca, 2004) signal the increase in maguey production, but when comparing it with the information from the surveys applied during this study’s field work, it was observed that the agricultural surface and the population involved in the productive activities are decreasing (Table 2) due to the low profitability of the crop and low incomes, causing the migration of peasants to the USA, as happened with coffee production in México in the early 1990s (^{Pérez and Echánove, 2006}) and with flower production in Colombia during 1996-1999 (^{Páez, 2008}).

Official information points toward the development and consolidation of the maguey-mezcal productive chain; however, the situation is adverse for peasants when observing other indicators in Table 2 related to the demand and offer of raw material and the purchasing conditions of mezcal producers: payments in plans longer than six months to peasants who produce maguey, who because of the lack of economic liquidity for maintenance have abandoned the crop, the agricultural farming tasks, and the cutting of mature maguey for its sale.

The agricultural farming tasks abandoned in maguey cultivation that stand out are weeding and manual clearing of the soil, and thinning. The first contribute to improving the capture and use of moisture by maguey and to improve the soil fertility. The second is defining in the growth of the mother plant when separating the shoots (asexual reproduction) that arise three years after establishing the crop; they are cleaned, the roots are cut (to promote the emergence of a new root), and they are selected to establish a new sowing, with these activities requiring the payment of workdays to be done. Under conditions of overproduction, producers do not carry out these activities because of the high costs of workdays, but in order to conserve the sowing they only separate the shoots (without cleaning and selecting) and they dispose of them as a strategy for productive and economic management, and as a savings mechanism when not performing investments for the payment of workdays in the selection and cleaning of shoots. In the case of scarcity and demand, there are two options: 1) Performing weeding, cleaning, selection and using them by the same producer to establish new sowing; and 2) The clean and selected shoots are sold to other producers to establish new sowing at a price during the study period of $5.00 to $12.00 per plant, according to their size and quality.

They did not cut mature maguey because of the high costs that payment of six workdays represented (in total $1200.00), per truck with a capacity of three tons. The cost of the workdays is related to the scarcity of the workforce in the region; in addition to cutting, the payment for transport of the maguey to the palenque for its processing is added (in average $1000.00). Both payments are hardly recoverable due to the null demand during the study period in the region, situation that led to the abandonment of the crop and traditional agricultural practices.

The data from the surveys applied to the sample of producing peasants indicate that under conditions of overproduction of maguey mezcalero, only 5.7 % performed farming tasks, 10 % extracted shoots, 8.4 % did not cut mature maguey, and only 4.3 % carried out the three activities mentioned, associated to auto-production of mezcal. A minority group of peasants who own crops established for two to three years are waiting to obtain information referring to other uses, products and byproducts that can be obtained from maguey mezcalero, such as those mentioned by ^{Antonio (2011)}, like the production of inulin for the pharmaceutical industry, of biofuels, or sowing associated to oleaginous plants (Ricinus comunis L., Jatropha curcas L.) that makes the establishment of biodiesel producing plants possible. Likewise, ^{Castro (2016)} mentions that polylactic acid can be used for the elaboration of packaging for foods, and citric acid for diverse uses.

Agricultural surface and availability of mature maguey

The field visits and the information obtained from the surveys applied to the sample obtained in the communities of study highlight that during the period of overproduction in the cultivation of maguey mezcalero they were in diverse states of maturity; 70 % corresponded to crops with high degree of maturity that required immediate cutting for their processing and reducing to the minimum the economic losses caused by the lack of maguey demand in the region. The information also indicates that when not performing the cutting, the economic losses in the global income of the peasants was 60o%; in this regard, ^{Antonio (2004)} reports that under conditions of demand and scarcity the losses represent 30 % of the global income when relating to the frequent variations in the price of the raw material at the price of mezcal in the local and national market, and the presence of intermediaries in the commercialization of the beverage. The rest of the crops (Table 3) begin their stage of maturity and sexual reproduction (with floral scape or quiote); in this case, the producing peasants performed agricultural farming activities focused on the production of plants (flowering, flower pruning, etc.) for the establishment of seedbeds and later new sowing.

This information shows the dimensions of the socioeconomic and productive decapitalization related to the overproduction of maguey mezcalero and the reduction of the global income, situation that worsens the poverty of peasants.

Maguey mezcalero market and prices in Matatlán and El Camarón, Oaxaca

The studies by ^{Antonio and Smit (2012)} mention that in 2009 the demand for maguey mezcalero for the production of tequila and mezcal decreased and overproduction took place; accompanied by the socioeconomic effects mentioned, the lack of knowledge about other uses, products and byproducts that can be obtained from this raw material deepened. Based on the field visits and data from the surveys applied in the communities studied, only one producing peasant from Matatlán mentioned having basic verbal information about obtaining inulin; all of them ignore the theme of obtaining biofuels and other products mentioned by ^{Castro (2016)}, situation that worsened the lack of demand and contributed to the decrease and abandonment of the cultivation of maguey mezcalero in the study period.

During the presence of tequila industrialists in Matatlán and El Camarón, 100 % of the peasants cut maguey in different stages of maturity, traded it and transported it to the stockpile centers established in Tlacolula and El Camarón, at a price of $ 4000.00/t. Another modality of purchase was the maguey plots, also in different stages of maturation, by producers from the region hired by the tequila industrialists for this purpose. The information from the surveys and interviews show that each productive unit sold, in average, 0.75 ha^-1, with an average yield of 13 and 17 t/ha in the valleys and hillsides, respectively. All of the peasants pointed out that 80 % of the maguey sold to tequila producers was immature (between five and seven years of cultivation) and the remaining percentage was at the beginning of maturity and without “magueys capons”, which is preferred by mezcal producers because of its high content of sugars and better yields to obtain this beverage.

The data from direct observation, interviews and surveys applied to the study sample estimated that in Matatlán and El Camarón, 25 % of the maguey crops are completely useless due to their high decomposition; instead, 75 % of the crops are useful for obtaining alcoholic beverages, although making the cut soon, because there is between 20 and 30 % of maguey with a high degree of maturity and close to natural decomposition. In this regard, the data from the surveys indicate that in the hillside system, 100 % of the producing peasants presented difficulties to sell the maguey; in contrast, in the valleys they managed to commit the sale to mezcal producers under the modality of “purchase by plot” or “maguey chunks” (in Zapotec, ndaa duva), with an extension not larger than a hectare and generally at low prices.

In the “purchase by plot” modality, peasants offer it in the palenques; if the mezcal producer is interested, he selects and buys the plot close to maturity and with a higher amount of “capones” or close to developing the floral scape or quiote. Both parts establish the price (in the study period in average $ 6000.00 ha^-1), generally differed into several payments. When taking possession of the “maguey plot”, the mezcal producer cuts the quitoes, with the aim of increasing the amount of “capones” in the short term (one to two years); then, he selects and begins cutting maguey for its processing, obtaining high yields in mezcal production and immediate earnings. This process of productive-economic transference generates considerable savings for the mezcal producer when not investing during the initial stages of the maguey development cycle; also, the decrease of risks from economic losses related to the adverse climate conditions that the crop occasionally faces.

The strategy of maguey purchase by mezcal producers under the conditions described previously contributes to the permanence of the artisanal productive system in Matatlán (global mezcal capital), process where two elements stand out: 1) In the purchase of maguey plots at low prices, the peasant performs the transfer of the crop because he lacks economic resources to carry out the farming activities during the agricultural cycle. The productive possession is accompanied by a program of natural maturation of maguey related to the needs of the mezcal producer; and 2) A temporary form of property of the maguey plot is established by the mezcal producer when acquiring the rights to perform agricultural activities, established in verbal or written agreements with the peasant maguey producer, who is left without means to perform agricultural activities during the period of time agreed. Generally, the mezcal producer has up to two years to carry out the maguey cut and to return the plot to the owner.

The information about producer peasants during the field work highlights that the farming activities in the two initial stages (six years) of maguey sowing represent 80 % of the production costs from the concept of payment for workdays that the mezcal producer does not perform and which he saves, making the opportunity to purchase the maguey plots more attractive because workdays are only paid for cutting quiotes, which is generally carried out by himself.

In the district of Yautepec, sowing maguey on hillsides is in monocrop and substantial in the local economy; mezcal production is marginal. It is considered as a supplier of raw material because it has the agroclimate conditions that favor and reduce the period of growth of maguey mezcalero (in average seven years). In a situation of overproduction the producer resorted to strategies of economic efficiency that allow the continuity of their crop or conserving the productive vocation in the community, using economic and material assets that he owns, such as freight vehicles (trucks with capacity of up to 3.5 t); they performed the cut of mature maguey and transported it to Matatlán to sell it to mezcal producers, generally in minimum payment plans of two months (period when the mezcal producer sells his mezcal production). The price of sale to mezcal producers in 2012 was $1000.00 per truck with the capacity mentioned before, price that was not enough to cover the expense by concept of cutting and transport, and much less the investment made in the whole cultivation cycle; however, in order to counteract the expenses mentioned, in the cut he used the family workforce saving the payment for this concept, and the sale of maguey is done by taking advantage of the transport of a family member to the state’s capital to carry out personal activities or to purchase of goods that can only be acquired there, with this condition being favored by the geographic location of Matatlán which is on the way to the city of Oaxaca. This sales strategy contributes to the continuity of maguey sowing even under situations of absence of demand and low prices.

Physical-productive conditions of soils and overproduction of maguey

The environmental benefits generated by agriculture are necessary in the production functions of the activity itself, in rural development, in biodiversity conservation, in the combat against deforestation, desertification and drought, among others. The inadequate management or loss of these conditions caused by various factors have unfavorable effects in the ecosystems, as is the case of maguey mezcalero overproduction in the MR caused by socioeconomic factors and the productive actions previously mentioned, which have led to the abandonment of maguey sowing and traditional agricultural practices, causing the deterioration of the agricultural soil where the sowing is carried out, such as compacting, desertification and erosion in the long term, processes that complicate solving other problems that humanity faces, such as food security, biodiversity conservation, and which ^{Derpsch (2005)} highlights, related to the production of greenhouse gases to establish carbon sinks in the soil, and those described by ^{CDB (2000)} and ^{FAO (1997)}, linked to the conservation of agricultural biodiversity, among others.

Direct observation, interviews and surveys applied to maguey producing peasants in Matatlán and El Camarón contribute information about the negative effects of abandoning the cultivation and agricultural practices on the gradual degradation of the agricultural soil used in the cultivation of maguey mezcalero and other rainfed agricultural crops. The process of soil degradation is also caused by the intensive use of natural resources, as is the case of forestry, livestock production, agriculture in Argentine rural communities (^{Moscuzza et al., 2003}). The results indicate that the abandonment of maguey cultivation began at the beginning of 2009; same as the extraction and sale, it began during this period in the District of Yautepec, by slightly over 70 % of peasant producers, and months later by those in Matatlán. In this last case, the delay was because of the relation with mezcal elaboration, which in part delayed the socioeconomic and environmental effects caused by the lack in its demand.

Concerning the physical-productive state of the soils, the field observation from direct observation, interviews and surveys applied to producers point out that most of the maguey agricultural surface abandoned has wild growth and is in a gradual process of compacting due to the lack of traditional agricultural practices, such as soil clearing and manual weeding of the crop, which favors the functions and the benefits in the prevention of soil erosion.

In the hillside system, it is observed that compacting at different levels is accompanied by landslide and tends toward immediate erosion from the effect of rainfall that drags the soil particles and organic material, provoking the decrease in filtration and the increase in rockiness, situation that is observed in slightly over 60 % of the agricultural surface of the producers in El Camarón, and to a lesser degree, in Matatlán (Table 4).

In Matatlán the interview respondents mentioned that, because of the irregularity of the rain period, the desertification of soils is noticeable, and is caused by the loss in its capacity for moisture absorption, which gradually leads to erosion, linked also to the absence of environmental functions that maguey cultivation provides. Likewise, they mention that an indicator of dryness and infertility of the soils is its coloration; in this regard, the information obtained highlights that during the study period slightly over half (Table 4) of the soils have lost their coloration (under sowing conditions they are dark brown), associated to the lack of rains. The crops do not prosper; also, the possibilities of presenting erosion processes in the medium and long term are increased, situation that brings with it difficulties to attain food security and conservation of biodiversity in the communities of study and the MR.