Resumen

CAIMMI, Nuria. Comedores Paisanos and Legumbrerías Bolivianas in an Argentine Production Area. Rev. colomb. antropol. [online]. 2025, vol.61, n.2, e2926.  Epub 01-Mayo-2025. ISSN 0486-6525.  https://doi.org/10.22380/2539472x.2926.

Entering one of Argentina’s largest agricultural production areas-the Platense horticultural belt-requires an understanding of its plastic nature, manifested in the extensive presence of greenhouses and agricultural input containers. Within this context, comedores paisanos (country canteens) and legumbrerías (vegetable shops) emerge in relation to the region’s history of Bolivian migration. This article offers an ethnographic analysis of these spaces, based on participant observation, interviews, and digital research. The findings demonstrate that canteens and legumbrerías play a central role in the formation and reinforcement of kinship and community networks by activating socio-economic flows. As spaces of social reproduction, they allow migrants to feel at home by publicly recreating the domestic kitchens of their pre-migration lives. However, the sector’s broader process of segregation limits the potential of these spaces to transform Argentina’s wider food system. The study concludes that the recent rise of canteens and legumbrerías signals a redefinition of shared food practices, shaped by dynamics of integration and exclusion, valuation and devaluation, and is infused with common aspirations, dreams, and challenges.

Palabras clave : food; Bolivian migration; productive peri-urban areas; Platense horticultural belt; food anthropology.

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