The role of agriculture in the Bolivian economy in the late 1980s expanded as the collapse of the tin industry forced the country to diversify its productive and export base. Agricultural production as a share of GDP was about 23% in 1987, compared with 30% in 1960 and a low of just under 17% in 1979.Seyler, Daniel J. "Agriculture". In . The recession of the 1980s, along with unfavorable weather conditions, particularly droughts and floods, hampered output. Agriculture employed about 46% of the country's labor force in 1987. Most production, with the exception of coca, focused on the domestic market and self-sufficiency in food. However, with increased industrial agriculture starting in the early 2000s, exportation of commodities such as quinoa has grown substantially and local consumption has declined. Foreign industries' introduction of new machinery, monoculture, and chemicals (such as pesticides) to Bolivian agriculture has shifted production further away from Indigenous farmers and created a larger dependence on foreign markets. Agricultural exports accounted for only about 15% of total exports in the late 1980s, depending on weather conditions and commodity prices for agricultural goods, hydrocarbons, and minerals.

Production In 2018, Bolivia produced 9.6 million tons of sugarcane, 2.9 million tons of soy, 1.2 million tons of maize, 1.1 million tons of potato, 1 million tons of sorghum, 700 thousand tons of banana, 541 thousand tons of rice, 301 thousand tons of wheat, in addition to smaller yields of other agricultural products, such as tangerine, cassava, orange, beans, sunflower seed, cotton etc. .Bolivia production in 2018, by FAO Around the 1960s and 70s, Bolivia was producing about 5000 tons of quinoa in an area of 10000 hectares. This increased dramatically leading to a production of about 25000 tons in the early 2000s in an area of 50000 hectares.

Obstacles Like the economy at large, agriculture faced major structural obstacles that kept it from reaching its vast potential. The lack of roads and easy access to ports hindered farmers from getting their produce to domestic markets and to the export markets that provided the most potential for the sector's growth. A lack of credit for farmers was another long-standing problem, caused by government policies, the use of credit for political ends, and the strict lending procedures of the commercial banking sector. Bolivia also suffered from the worst farming technology in South America and an insufficient network of research and extension institutions to reverse that trend. The combined lack of infrastructure and technology made farmers vulnerable to almost yearly droughts and floods. The traditional use of pricing policies ensuring lower food prices for urban residents also lessened incentives for farmers. In addition, farmers increasingly had to compete with contraband imports in a wide range of agricultural products. Beyond these specific obstacles, agriculture, like all sectors of the economy, also suffered from the country's endemic political instability, economic mismanagement, and slow economic growth.

Crops Potatoes Potatoes have been an important crop and staple of Bolivia grown in the highland region since pre-Inca times.Seyler, Daniel J. "Crops". In . In 1988 approximately 190,000 hectares, mostly in the highlands, produced 700,000 tons of potatoes. These figures compared unfavorably, however, with 1975, when 127,680 hectares provided 834,000 tons of potatoes, indicating that yields were dwindling. Bolivia was generally self-sufficient in potatoes (over 200 varieties were grown), but imports were needed during occasional periods of drought or freezing. Bolivia also exported some of its harvest to Brazil. The lack of new seed varieties, chemical fertilizers, and irrigation systems, together with the continued exhaustion of the highland soils, was responsible for the low yields. In the late 1980s, the lack of financial credit at planting time represented the greatest impediment facing potato growers.

Corn Corn was the second major food crop, and its importance was growing. Corn covered more hectares than any other crop. In the late 1980s, approximately 300,000 hectares provided more than 475,000 tons of white corn, the traditional corn of Bolivia. Yellow Cuban corn, grown in the tropical areas of Santa Cruz, was becoming more common; 160,000 hectares produced 350,000 tons of yellow corn in 1988. 60% of the corn, including both white and yellow varieties was grown by small farmers in the valleys, with the remaining 40% planted by medium-large farmers in Santa Cruz. Small farmers used at least half of their corn for human consumption, as animal feed, or for brewing chicha, the primary intoxicating beverage consumed by Bolivian Indians. The other half of their production and most of the commercially farmed corn were sold to Bolivia's forty private animal-feed plants, which bought 50% of the country's annual corn output. Many corn farmers were members of the Corn and Sorghum Producers Association (Productores de Maíz y Sorgo Promasor). Promasor was particularly active in Santa Cruz, where its members also produced 20,000 tons a year of sorghum, a drought-resistant crop, from some 6,000 hectares of land.

Rice and grains Rice has become an increasingly popular crop in Bolivia. Eaten by people in the lowlands and valleys since the 1950s, rice became the focus of government import-substitution policies beginning in the 1960s. In the late 1980s, the country was generally self-sufficient in rice production, some years importing and other years exporting. Bolivia's rice, however, was not of high quality by international standards, thus limiting export markets. In 1988 some 90,000 hectares of land, mostly in the Santa Cruz Department and Beni Department, produced 140,000 tons of rice. Bolivia imported one fifth of its total consumption of rice in 1988. Approximately 20,000 small farmers produced the bulk of the country's paddy rice and, in turn, sold it via truckers to thirty private rice mills.

Barley was a common crop in the Bolivian highlands and was particularly well suited for the high altitudes. In 1988 the cultivation of 80,000 hectares by 300,000 highland farmers produced 75,000 tons of barley, which was used primarily in the country's notable beer industry. About 10% of the barley was consumed on the farm as fodder, and Bolivia imported about one-quarter of its total consumption of barley in 1988.

Quinoa, the "mother grain" of the Incas, was the only food crop in the highlands that experienced sustained growth during the 1970s and 1980s. Cultivation of quinoa, which grows only above 2,000 meters, jumped from 15,640 hectares producing 9,000 tons in 1980 to 45,800 hectares producing 21,140 tons in 1984, and production continued to expand in the late 1980s. Quinoa is a popular crop in the Bolivian altiplano because of its drought resistant traits and its ability to grow is colder temperatures. The price of quinoa increased drastically, around 800% from 2005 to 2013, indicating a significant increase in demand during that time. Quinoa is high in fiber and rich in protein, making it a health food in industrialized countries.

Despite repeated attempts by the government's National Wheat Institute (Instituto Nacional del Trigo) to make the nation selfsufficient in wheat production, Bolivia produced only about 20% of the wheat that it consumed in the late 1980s. In 1988 about 88,000 hectares produced 60,000 tons of wheat and in the same year, 280,000 tons of wheat were imported. In 1988 the United States Agency for International Development (AID) provided 180,000 tons of wheat through its Public Law 480 (PL-480) Food for Peace Program. Western Europe and Canada operated programs similar to the AID program but on a smaller scale. Argentina provided wheat in exchange for Bolivian natural gas. Smuggled wheat flour from Peru and Argentina represented a serious threat to domestic wheat production. In 1988 analysts estimated that 60,000 tons of smuggled wheat had entered Bolivia annually. Small traditional farmers in the highlands and large soybean farmers in Santa Cruz provided most of the country's 1988 wheat harvest, which was roughly equivalent to output in 1978, but only wheat from the Santa Cruz area was used for commercial milling. Analysts believed that wheat would produce higher yields when the proper tropical seeds, fertilizer, and irrigation methods were used.

Timeline: The perception and cultivation of Quinoa in Bolivia

Traditionally, the Inca civilization living in the Andes perceived quinoa as a valued and sacred grain. The perception of the grain changed when the Spanish colonized the area and brought with them their own, foreign crops. With the addition of new, crops such as barley (not native to Bolivian agriculture) came modifications in traditional farming techniques. Even-still, the land and techniques used by Indigenous population to cultivated quinoa, called “Aynokas,” remained. This kept Indigenous farming techniques alive and, therefore, preserved the biodiversity of the grain.

Over time, in addition to the change in perception, a large portion of Bolivia’s population began to see quinoa as “food for the poor”. This perception started to change in the early 2000s when there was a major increase in consumption and demand for quinoa, mostly in Europe and the West. This surge in demand can largely be attributed to the many health benefits of the grain. Quinoa is rich in proteins, beneficial fatty acids, and vitamins, all of which are fostered by the biodiversity maintained by Indigenous farming techniques. Quinoa is also gluten-free, which is a significant selling point for the growing gluten-intolerant population.

All of these factors led to the quinoa boom in Bolivia starting in 2011, with its peak lasting for four years. This boom signaled a shift in Bolivia from Indigenous, sustainable farming practices to large-scale industrial production, including the new use of pesticides and other chemicals. These new techniques have had major social, economic, and environmental impacts. Not only did large-scale production cause a decline in the diversity of the grain, but it also harmed the fertility of the soil in the southern Altiplano, where quinoa is produced. Industrial farming introduced chemicals and new machinery, such as tractors, which contributed to increasing soil degradation and the decline in natural vegetation. The use of tractors and other machinery has effects like loosening of the soil, causing it to be more susceptible to erosion and lose much of its moisture. Tactics such as the planting of cover crops to protect soil from erosion and the introduction of more grazing animals like llamas to protect soil health will help counteract some of these effects if put in place.

Economically, this new form of production and exportation benefited Bolivia by bringing in more capital. Under President Evo Morales’s economic goals, this capital was to be redistributed to the poor and Indigenous populations. Despite this economic growth from increased production, Bolivia became more reliant on foreign industries, making it more difficult for the country to meet its goal of economic decolonization.

Vegetables and fruits Bolivians produced a wide range of vegetables, fruits, and other food crops, mostly for local consumption. The principal vegetable crops included kidney beans, green beans, chick peas, green peas, lettuce, cabbage, tomatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, and chili peppers. Also common were alfalfa, rye, cassava, sweet potatoes and the fruits oranges, limes, grapes, apples, quince, papayas, peaches, plums, cherries, figs, avocadoes, pineapples, strawberries, bananas, and plantains.

Cash Crops