This paper analyses how the production activities in the tobacco cluster in Rio Pardo Valley are organised through a complex network linking local producers to multinational companies and global markets. The relationship between global chain governance and local upgrading strategies has received growing attention in the recent literature.
The paper aims to contribute to this debate by seeking answers to three questions: first, how is the cluster’s organisation at the local level influenced by the global tobacco chain; second, how are the innovation paths and learning mechanisms in the cluster affected by the global chain governance; and third, what are the long-term prospects of this cluster considering the power asymmetries associated with the cluster’s production and knowledge systems?
