Production and organization characterization of Los Mezcaleros, Malinalco, Mexico

Abstract

Mezcal production in the study region, ranchería "El Zapote", Malinalco, Mexico, is booming. The process integrates selection and cutting of raw material; cooking of the agave; grinding of the must; fermentation of the fructosed juice; distillation; rectification and maturation of the distillate. The mezcalero organizations are heterogeneous, with different sizes, characteristics, structures and objectives; the way of producing and grouping them was analyzed; both topics led to the proposal of optimal production processes in accordance with the requirements of the Denomination of Origin Mezcal regulations, proposing organizational schemes throughout the agave-mezcal production chain. The paradigm used was qualitative, with a holistic perspective, interacting with the informants in a natural way, resulting in the key perspectives provided by the mezcal masters, apprentices, magueyeros, intermediaries, bottlers and marketers. The instrument used in the research was of an ethnographic and narrative nature, complemented with the application of 90 in-depth interviews, during August to November of the initial year of research. The organizational system is informal, satisfying local consumption, pretending to meet regional demand, reflecting improvisation in all members of the value chain, lack of evaluation, lack of process monitoring and no quality system. An efficient organization is required, with pertinent management to encourage, facilitate and favor compliance with systematic requirements aimed at improving, disseminating, promoting and offering what a protected product means and its implicit and explicit scope derived from its implementation