Entre "lo local y lo externo". El rol del territorio local en la transformación histórica del sistema alimentario de Lima Metropolitana

Abstract

The food system is a relevant component to sustain the cities, that arises from the interrelationship among stakeholders, infraestructures and natural resources, enabling food production, transformation, storage, distribution, commercialization and consumption, as well as food waste reuse. Thus, the system provides enough accessible and harmless food to the locals. In South America, the Pacific hydrographic region has hosted societies that created food systems that evolved from self-sufficient to open to economic chains. This has an impact on the management of production areas in the territory. Since pre-Hispanic times, territory-adapted food systems were developed, which were focused on managing several production areas distributed in a group of basins. Nevertheless, the creation of large cities in this region, such as Metropolitan Lima, have resulted in the relocation of production areas out and away from their territory, which allows to differentiate what is local and what is external. Although the metropolis became a strong economic hub that contributes to the development of global and domestic economic chains; population growth and unplanned urbanization have caused soil degradation and the reduction of arable land (supplied to the real estate market), relegating the local metropolitan territory to food trade and consumption. In consequence, the food system is vulnerable to global or domestic crisis scenarios that could interrupt the external production process. This research analyzes the historical transformation of Lima’s food system to reflect on the local territory’s contribution to food security.

El sistema alimentario representa un componente esencial para el sostenimiento de las ciudades que surge de la interrelación de actores, infraestructuras y recursos naturales, lo que propicia la producción, transformación, almacenaje, distribución, comercialización y consumo de alimentos. De esta manera, el sistema provee suficientes alimentos diversos e inocuos a la población local. En Sudamérica, la región hidrográfica del Pacífico ha albergado sociedades que conformaron sistemas alimentarios que transitaron desde la autosuficiencia prehispánica hasta la apertura a cadenas económicas nacionales y globales contemporáneas, periodo donde los sistemas alimentarios de metrópolis, como Lima Metropolitana, son sostenidos predominantemente por territorios productivos fuera de la ciudad , mientras el suelo cultivable próximo a la ciudad es reducido o degradado por el incremento poblacional y urbanización no planificada. Esta tendencia muestra un sistema alimentario metropolitano marcado por la relación entre lo local y lo externo, lo que permite cuestionar si esta relación dicotómica ha elevado la vulnerabilidad del sistema frente a escenarios de crisis global o nacional y reducido el sostenimiento de la seguridad alimentaria en la ciudad. El presente texto analiza la transformación histórica del sistema alimentario de Lima para reflexionar sobre el aporte del territorio local metropolitano a la seguridad alimentaria.