Social Metabolism indicators to analyze the impact of the transgenic industrial agriculture model on the soil

Abstract

The Agroecological approach brings with it theoretical and methodological tools that help to
consider in a systemic and holistic way the different dimensions of sustainability. Based on
that, the proposed approach is necessary to foster a critical analysis of conventional agriculture.
The Ecological Economic as a contributing discipline to Agroecology designs indicators
of social metabolism that will guide the redesign and proper management of agroecosystems.
Among them, the Virtual Soil and the Nutrient Footprint are useful for having a large scale
analysis of the loss and export of soil’s nutrients. This work presents a preliminary evaluation
of the micronutrients and macronutrients exported from Argentine soils due to the expansion
of soybean throughout its history.