Chalayplasa

The Peruvian Andes have three distinct agroecological zones — the yunga (lower), the quechua (middle) and the puna (higher) — where the viability of various crops is largely determined by altitude. Yunga farmers grow coffee, coca and other fruits; quechua farmers grow corn, vegetables and certain legumes; and puna farmers produce potatoes, wool and meat. Andean barter systems have existed for centuries as a way for people from different zones to procure foods they are unable to grow themselves. Because the chewing of coca leaves is a daily practice and an expression of Quechua cultural identity, barter has also been particularly important for enabling quechua and puna communities to access this essential crop.

Beginning in the 1970s, the existing local food system was disrupted by policy shifts that forced Quechua farmers to participate in the cash economy. First, the Peruvian government, the World Bank and multinational agricultural corporations pushed local farmers to intensify their production — in the process introducing genetically engineered crops, pesticides and other industrial technologies — in order to supply growing urban and export markets. Second, in cooperation with the U.S. War on Drugs, the Peruvian government prohibited the free trade of coca (the raw ingredient in cocaine), authorizing only the state-run National Coca Company (ENACO) to sell it legally.

The chalayplasa emerged in response to these pressures as a way for local producers to continue growing, trading and consuming the foods they wanted. It also enabled them to maintain an economic system governed by principles of mutual respect and affection.

The chalayplasa takes place in the Lares Valley in the southeastern Andes, serving over 4,000 participants from more than 30 yunga, quechua and puna _communities. Traders — mostly women — use agreed upon standards of measurement, some products are exchanged one to one, others by volume. Some trades include _yapa, an expression of generosity and solidarity, where one party offers an extra amount on top of the agreed exchange to support a person whose age or circumstances hamper their ability to produce.

Altogether the chalayplasa trades more than five tonnes of food per week, supplying about one third of the food consumed by most households. More broadly, the markets contribute to local food sovereignty (community control over food production, distribution and consumption) and agricultural biodiversity (by encouraging cultivation of a wide variety of crops). By ensuring that even the most materially insecure members of the community have access to adequate food and nutrition, while safeguarding the environment where they live, the chalayplasa represents a vital form of collective generosity for the people of the Andes.

Contributors: Maha Tazi, Erin Brown