Green Gold

This book applies an approach to study the externalization of cost under capitalism in the production ofArgentine yerba mate, an infusion with stimulant properties long used by indigenous peoples. Consumption in today's globalized economy makes it difficult to understand the consequences of our actions across the globe. A political-ecologicallens, informed by the work of Robert Sack and Ian Cook, can help guide an analysis that geographically reconstructs supply chains andreveal the realities of consumption. The use of yerba mate has become a cornerstoneof Argentine society and identity, and yerba mate processors are working to expand exports globally. In Argentina's Misiones Province, the heart ofyerba mate production, the true costs of production are borne by the children, the impoverished laborers, and the environment of Argentina'sAtlantic Rainforest. These consequences of modernity, along with the efforts of an NGO to remedy them, are presented and assessed.