Andrew Ofstehage, an economic and environmental anthropologist, dives into the intriguing world of transnational farming in Brazil's Cerrado. He shares the motivations behind Midwestern U.S. farmers relocating for industrial soy production, revealing the stark environmental consequences of their practices. The discussion touches on the cultural challenges they face, their reliance on technology over traditional farming, and the complex dynamics of competition and community among farmers. Ofstehage also examines the broader implications of soy culture, particularly in relation to climate change and food narratives.
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insights INSIGHT
Soylandia: Place and Idea
Soylandia is both a physical region and an idea representing flexible, disconnected farming practices.
Farmers treat land, crops, and labor as interchangeable parts, moving and adapting for profit rather than tradition.
insights INSIGHT
Why US Farmers Migrate to Brazil
US Midwest farmers moved to Brazil due to expensive land and limited opportunities at home.
Brazil offered cheaper land, a new adventure, and a chance to start farming on a larger scale.
insights INSIGHT
Adaptation to Brazilian Farming
Many American farmers initially tried using traditional US farming methods in Brazil but quickly adapted to Brazilian techniques.
Success meant becoming flexible and learning from local practices and conditions.
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Welcome to Soylandia, Transnational Farmers in the Brazilian Cerato
Welcome to Soylandia, Transnational Farmers in the Brazilian Cerato
Transnational Farmers in the Brazilian Cerrado
Andrew Ofstehage
Andrew Ofstehage's "Welcome to Soylandia" offers a compelling ethnography of US Midwest farmers who migrated to Brazil's Cerrado region for industrial farming. The book explores the creation of 'flexible farms,' characterized by severed connections between land, plants, and labor. It examines the challenges faced by these farmers in adapting to a new environment and navigating complex relationships with workers, the Brazilian state, and the land itself. Ofstehage's work highlights the tensions between profit-driven agriculture and sustainable practices, raising crucial questions about the future of global food production and environmental stewardship. The book provides a nuanced understanding of the complexities of industrial agriculture in a globalized world.
Following a group of US Midwest farmers who purchased tracts of land in the tropical savanna of eastern Brazil, Welcome to Soylandia: Transnational Farmers in the Brazilian Cerrado (Cornell University Press, 2025) by Dr. Andrew Ofstehage investigates industrial farming in the modern developing world. Seeking adventure and profit, the transplanted farmers created what Dr. Ofstehage calls "flexible farms" that have severed connections with the basic units of agriculture: land, plants, and labor. But while the transnational farmers have destroyed these relationships, they cannot simply do as they please. Regardless of their nationality, race, and capital, they must contend with pests, workers, the Brazilian state, and the land itself.
Welcome to Soylandia explores the frictions that define the new relationships of flexible farming—a paradigm that Dr. Ofstehage shows is ready to be reproduced elsewhere in Brazil and exported to the rest of the globe, including the United States. Through this compelling ethnography, Dr. Ofstehage takes readers on a tour of Soylandia and the new world of industrial agriculture, globalized markets, international development, and environmental change that it heralds.
This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. You can find Miranda’s interviews on New Books with Miranda Melcher, wherever you get your podcasts.
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