SOCIO-ECOLOGICAL TRANSFORMATION IN THE COFFEE AGROECOSYSTEM AFFECTED BY RUST IN CHIAPAS, MÉXICO

Abstract

The coffee (Coffea arabica) agroecosystem provides environmental services, cultural identity and economic livelihoods to coffee growers in the state of Chiapas, the main coffee-producing state in Mexico. With the arrival of rust (Hemileia vastatrix) in 2012, these agroforestry systems were modified. The objective of this research was to analyze the response of the system to these changes related to the process of socio-ecological transformation, through the strategic responses adopted by producers to face the problems caused by rust. An agroecological, agronomic and socioeconomic characterization of the coffee plantation was carried out. Results revealed that the producers correspond to an elderly population, with a low educational level, smallholders, who belong to different ethnic groups. Agroecosystems develop mostly at intermediate altitudes, between 1000 and 1300 masl, which are managed under agroecological schemes and 62.3 % are managed as traditional polyculture systems that maintain a shade canopy and conserve biodiversity. The Bourbon variety dominates over the others with 19 %. An increase in productivity was recorded in 10 of the 12 regions analyzed during the 2015-2017 period. It is concluded that the strategy of managing diverse coffee varieties under traditional polyculture systems and specialized systems in the coffee agroecosystem has allowed their resilience to phytosanitary problems such as rust, in addition to contributing to the recovery of productivity, and that it is preserved as a biocultural heritage that offers environmental services and financially supports groups of coffee growers who are custodians of these systems of high agroecological value.