Economic importance and competitiveness of agricultural chains in Aguascalientes, Mexico

Abstract

The goal of this paper was to determine the socioeconomic importance and competitiveness of agricultural chains in Aguascalientes, Mexico. Through standardization of indicators and the array of strategic positioning empirical evidence is found that, given the vertical integration between the agricultural and livestock production, chains and strategic priority are maize, cattle, poultry and swine. In contrast, beans, grapes, forage oats and pastures, need to increase their socio-economic importance, and the guava, peach, prickly pear and green alfalfa forage, require boost competitiveness. The vegetables, sheep, goats and honey were less important and less competitive; however, they show an expansionary trend driven by the public policies of the state, which focus on strings that require a lower water consumption and generate products with greater opportunity to position itself in the market, mainly the agro-industrial sector.