The “logistics revolution” of the 1970s shifted capital’s focus from the factories to where, when and how things move, which proved to be highly profitable. 

Logistics is at the very heart of the global capitalist system, since it refers to the transportation of goods and services from point A to B. Highways, canals, industrial ports, landing strips and warehouses constitute some of the colossal infrastructure of the logistics industry. In Belgium, logistics activities occupy an area equivalent to about 25 times that of Brussels, which represents a significant portion of the entire territory.

The volume of commodities circulating is increasing globally. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the value of goods exchanged across the planet has tripled. Today, the Port of Antwerp handles 271 million tons of cargo a year, compared to 121 million tons in 2005.

We coined the term Logistics Empire to refer to the sprawling networks of pillaging, landgrabbing, mass distribution of agro-industrial products and e-commerce, weapons circulation and so much more. Rather than being an apolitical science of management, we understand it as playing a direct role in relations of power, dispossession and the loss of our means of subsistence.