Stinky and smelly - but profitable : the Cape guano trade, c.1843 - 1910

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Soil infertility and concomitant low levels of food security under conditions of population pressure and land scarcity have been, and still remain, one of society's most daunting challenges. Over time, societies have tried to maximize the yield from the available land through the use of various fertilisers. In the 19th century in the midst of an environment infertility crisis, guano (bird dung) from the Peruvian coastal islands became, through a combination of factors, the international fertilizer of choice for most commercial farmers. As a result, a combination of natural factors, monopoly control and price manipulation contributed to the relative scarcity of the product. Nevertheless, strategic manoeuvring between the major players prevented any significant change in the supply regime.News of discoveries along the African coasts in the 1840s, some inside the territorial waters of the Cape Colony, introduced a new dimension to the trade. Both established merchant houses and new contenders strategised in an attempt to gain monopoly control. These events created new policy crises for the Cape Colony, the closest legal authority, and led to new policy and other initiatives in the absence of imperial precedents. The trade in guano also impacted on constitutional, political and scientific developments in the colony. Key amongst these was the struggle for monopoly control over both the Cape- and Ichaboe-based supply, which pitted individuals, family members and businesses against each other. The process became intertwined with political developments such as the transfer of political control from the Imperial authorities to the colonies. In addition, a coercive labour system developed under the colonial administration and colonial farmers struggled for fair access to the fertiliser, which added another dimension to the trade.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University