The extractivism of brown algae in northern Chile

Abstract

The extraction and collection of brown algae (huiros) showed an exponential increase in the early 2000s. This fishery is transformed into extractive due to the international demand for raw material for the production of alginate (a product widely used in the textile and food industries). Its analysis in terms of global value chain and extractivist logic highlights recurring aspects of these forms of appropriation of capitalist value: exploitation in cycles of abrupt rise and fall, environmental and socio-labour degradation, hierarchies and inequalities. It also shows other apparently more heterodox aspects such as the management of a natural resource participated by the collectors and the role of the state, or the relative isolation and the reduced size of the places where it is collected. Thus, this industry is a relevant case to delve into the complex dynamics of extractivism, especially in aspects of governance as a policy of co-management of artisanal resources on the coast of Chile. Keywords: (neo)extractivism, global value chains, comanagement, artisanal fisheries, brown algae.