Paper short abstract:

This paper explores the recolonizing effects of Latin American food infrastructure as the source of the current complexities of food sovereignty discourse in San José, Costa Rica, specifically through the brand monopolies of gastronomic patrimonies and transnational companies’ infrastructures.

Paper long abstract:

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the plundering of the biological wealth of Latin American biodiverse countries has caused a domino effect of destructive free-trade agreements, productive and market labor fragmentation of sustainable food infrastructures by transnational companies, and public policies thwarted by foreign economic interests. COVID-19 was a time of local reflection and union, in which the limelight was shined on Latin American alternative food networks, agricultural associations, and academic nuclei as they came together to adapt to new conditions and create new spaces in the market. Through this introspection, a post COVID-19 discourse looks very different due to the increased visibility of trade regulation and virtual activism. In the capital of Costa Rica, San José, COVID-19 yielded perspectives that promoted interdisciplinary collaboration towards anti-gentrification, denouncements in the press, and synergies with climate activism—as boundary objects of a larger food infrastructure transition. This paper will contexualize how intellectual properties shaped current Costa Rican food infrastructures, and explore the post COVID-19 food sovereignty climate of San José, including the criticisms, reactions, and activism of the brand monopolies of gastronomic patrimonies and transnational companies’ use of agrotoxins.