Agriculture, forestry, and fishing

Argentina is one of the world’s major exporters of soybeans and wheat, as well as meat. It is also one of the largest producers of wool and wine, but most of its wine is consumed domestically. Although agriculture is an important source of export earnings, it now accounts for a small percentage of the overall GDP, and it employs only a tiny portion of the nation’s workforce.

Wheat is Argentina’s largest crop in harvested land area, and it is the main crop in the cattle-raising southern Pampas of Buenos Aires and La Pampa provinces. Wheat and corn (maize) dominate in the north. Planting of corn and wheat began simultaneously in the northern Pampas. By the end of World War II, however, foreign competition had cut Argentine corn production in half, and production has increased only gradually since then. About half of the corn produced is used for livestock feed. The total area of the Pampas planted in sorghum and soybeans has grown since 1960 to rank just behind that of wheat and corn. These crops also serve primarily as livestock feed and are valuable for export. Another crop of the northern Pampas is flax.

More than nine-tenths of the country’s grapes are planted in the Northwest provinces of Mendoza and San Juan; most of the crop is used for wine making. Table grapes are a specialty in La Rioja. The warmer northern provinces of Tucumán, Salta, and Jujuy make up the sugarcane-growing region of Argentina. The sugarcane provinces also have citrus orchards, which were introduced as a safeguard against the volatility of the sugar market. Tobacco is also grown in Salta and Jujuy. The best area for cotton growing lies mainly west of the Paraná River, between the Bermejo and Dulce rivers. Most of the crop is used by the Argentine textile industry.

In Mesopotamia maté is the most important product of Misiones province, although since 1940 farmers have increasingly cultivated tea, tung trees (from which tung oil is derived), and citrus crops. Farther south in Mesopotamia, the truck-farming area supporting Buenos Aires, oranges, grapefruit, mandarins, and numerous vegetables are grown. The Negro River irrigation district in Patagonia has become one of Argentina’s major fruit-producing regions, particularly for apples and pears.

The Pampas are the traditional source of beef cattle, the country’s most valuable export commodity. Estancieros have proved quick to adapt to changing markets, switching breeds and supplementing alfalfa feed with grain sorghum in order to produce leaner meat. Most of Argentina’s hogs are raised in the Pampas, principally for domestic consumption. The cool, moist area of the southeastern Pampas, between Buenos Aires and the city of Mar del Plata, is an important dairy and sheep-raising district. Corrientes and Entre Ríos remain important cattle-raising provinces, ranking just behind those of the Pampas. Chaco province began as grazing ground for criollo cattle, but modern breeds have been susceptible to disease there, so the Chaco cattle economy has remained underdeveloped. Patagonia has at least half of the country’s sheep, most of which are sheared for their wool. For a period during the 1990s, Argentine beef was banned from importation into the European Union, the United States, and other nations because of the incidence of foot-and-mouth disease. Exports subsequently resumed but were subject to periodic bans. Most of the beef produced in Argentina is now eaten locally.

The forestry industry does not supply all of Argentina’s needs. Most of the harvest is used for lumber, with smaller amounts for firewood and charcoal. In Mesopotamia the Paraná pine is harvested for its timber; there are also plantations of poplar and willow. The Northwest highlands produce pine and cedar, used for pulp and industry. The red quebracho of the Chaco region is valuable for its tannin, and the white quebracho is used for lumber and charcoal. Scattered stands of algaroba (carob) provide local firewood and cabinet wood in the Pampas.

The fishing industry is comparatively small, owing in part to the overwhelming preference among Argentines for beef in their diet. Most coastal and deep-sea fishing is done in the Buenos Aires area, from the Río de la Plata to the Gulf of San Matías; the major ports are Mar del Plata and Bahía Blanca. Hake, squid, and shrimp make up a large part of the catch, about three-quarters of which is frozen or processed into oil and fish meal for export.