An example of the fragmentation of the latifundia structure? Attempt to explain the causes of the increase in the number of farms in the province of Jaén: 1962–1972

Abstract

In the period 1962-72 -between the two agricultural census- the rate of economic growth in Spain was very high, coinciding with a continnual reduction in rural active population, both in absolute and relative terms. Bearing in mind: (a) the change in circumstances and (b) that capitalist economic development involves a concentration of productive units, it is easily understandable that the number of agricultural holdings had decreased between 1962 and 1972. Nevertheless, in spite of the general decreasing tendency, certain provinces, such as Jaen and Valencia, did, in fact, register an increase in the number of holdings between the dates in question. This article outlines the conclusions reached from the study of the province of Jaen, one of the exceptions. In the case of Jaen two parallel hypotheses are tested. The first proposes that (a) the increase in the number of holdings can not be accounted for solely by variations in the surface area included in the census, (b) no process of concentration can be detected, and (c) on the contrary, a certain tendency towards the fragmentation of production units has existed. The second hypothesis, on which the study focuses, attempts to explain this "anomolous" evolution within capitalist development in the light of the fact that olive production, the major agricultural resource in the province, cannot be mechanized.