檸檬的社會生命史：從屏北到跨國的農作、風土品牌與飲食消費

當今的農村經濟在商品化的過程中，逐漸轉向多樣化、技術和資本導向的生產型態。早期人類學研究農村多著重在地方社會交錯的紋理樣貌，強調地緣、親屬與地方政治的生活樣態，我們可以如何不同於地方社會的框架，重探當代農村經濟？我認為以「物的社會生命史」概念，來探索作物在地方農村和消費市場的流通過程，有助於拼湊一套跨越在地與市場間的農村經濟樣態。我以屏北地區的檸檬為案例，探討檸檬對於農民、地方鄉鎮、消費的意義。檸檬的大眾消費多是以果汁飲料或是餐飲配菜的型態，相較其他直接食用的水果（如蓮霧、芒果等）注重它的甜味層次，檸檬多是以酸的基本味覺元素來為飲食提味。對農民來說，檸檬這種多年生與採收期長的果樹，雖然不是高經濟價值作物，但是在勞動力有限和身體老化的勞動條件下，它是個技術性不高且穩定收入的作物選項。檸檬高度集中種植在屏北地區，而其中九如和竹田逐漸發展地方檸檬獨特性的價值論述，舉辦節慶期盼增加知名度，來為檸檬產業增加地方價值。我從兩部分探索：風土環境的獨特性論述，以及兩地舉辦檸檬節的過程，來探討它在風土和品牌的加值效果上的意義有限。我比照節慶與地方特產的民族誌，指出檸檬的商品消費意義外在於屏北農村，加上種植的鄰近鄉鎮之間的檸檬農產差異性不強，使得檸檬的意義建構難以從區隔鄉鎮產地來產生效果。因此，我追索台灣戰後消費檸檬的歷史過程，來認識大眾如何理解並賦予價值。我釐清檸檬早期是為一種酸味，在一九八〇年代的飲料業中才看見逐漸以濃縮原汁添加在飲料中，在那之前多是以人工香料方式來取代檸檬本身。當它被當作果汁的範疇後，它的營養價值和真實添加逐漸受到消費者關注，且伴隨著食安危機中激發大家重視營養和健康價值。最後，我認為能夠轉譯地方農村生產與消費市場價值的關鍵在於農村的合作社組織。合作社作為一個收購農民的產銷單位，在加工榨汁、契作收購與輔導用藥上分別調節了市場供貨模式、以保證收購價的模式避免農民在面對市場波動時放棄種植、連結消費者的健康價值與管理農民的生產慣習。這使得合作社得以建立穩定通路、擴張銷售範圍與確立檸檬生產穩定度的商品鏈。

關鍵字

農村經濟；物質性；商品流通；飲料消費；風土品牌

並列摘要

Contemporary rural economy is gradually transformed into diverse, technology- and capital-driven modes of production in the process of commercialization. Earlier related anthropological researches focus on the intertwined dimensions of local society, emphasizing the geographic and kinship patterns as well as local politics. How can we revisit a contemporary rural economy differ from the former framework? I propose that the concept of social life of things is crucial to comprehend the circulation process of crops from production to concumption, constructing a multiscalar portrait of rural economy connecting different sites. Taking the lemon in Northern Pingtung Townships as a case study, I explore the significances intricated between the cultivators, production area, and consumption. Lemons are commonly consumed as an addition into beverages and cuisines. Compared to other fruits such as waxapples and mangos that are emphasized by their sweetness due to their direct edibility, lemons are often accentuated its acidity, one of the elementary sensory categories. Lemon is characterized as a perennial fruit tree with a long harvesting period according to the cultivators. Even though it is not a highly profited commercial crop, the low technological threshold on cultivation and the stable productivity provide the cultivators a preferable choice within a limited labor and aging condition of production. Lemons are concentratedly cultivated in the Northern Pingtung Townships, in which Jiuru and Zhutien Township have been developing discourses on local distinctiveness. They organize local festivals to gain popularity and values for the lemon industry. I explore two scopes of this process: the rhetorics of terroir distinction, and the establishment of lemon festival, to apprehend the limits of value accumulation on terroir branding. Through reading across ethnographies on food festivals and local specialties, I point out that the consumption meaning of lemon products is in fact exterior to local villages, and the neighboring townships have failed to distinguish their particularities due to similar geographical environment, therefore the distinctiveness of lemon is limited among these townships. Hence, I investigate the historical trajectories of lemon consumption in Taiwan since the 1950s, to recognize how it was understood and valued by the public. I clarify that lemon was initially represented as a sour flavor by using artificial flavorings, only when in the 1980s did the beverage enterprises gradually add concentrated juice to their beverage products. When lemon started to be identified as an element in the juice, it gained attraction on its nutrition and authencity from the consumers. Under the food safety crisis, nutritional and health values are highlighted two principal traits in lemon consumption. Finally, I argue that the key to translating the values from local rural production to consumers lies in the cooperatives. As a buyer from the farmers and a wholesale reseller, the cooperatives have managed to regulate the market supply pattern through juice processing. They also guarantee a contract farming to prevent farmers from abandoning cultivation in face of market fluctuation, in which they provide pesticide and fungicide consultation to manage the farmers’ production habitus that associates the health values which consumers appreciate. These strategies enable the cooperatives to establish constant product distribution, expand their sales markets and secure the stablility of lemon qualities and also the commodity chains.