Sep 13, 2010
The State of Parana Ranks High In Sustainable Agriculture
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
In recent years, there has been a concerted effort in Brazil to make agriculture more sustainable. Instead of expanding their agricultural base by deforestation in the cerrado and Amazon regions, the government has placed greater emphasis on increasing agricultural production in existing agricultural areas. Sustainable agriculture involves many factors such as: reducing deforestation, using less agricultural chemicals, improving soil fertility, reducing soil erosion and a more equitable distribution of rural incomes especially for smaller family farmers. In all of these areas, the state of Parana has been one of the leaders in Brazil.
There are two main forested regions of Brazil, the Amazon Forest and the Atlantic Forest. The Amazon Forest is more familiar of course, but the Atlantic Forest is in greater peril from deforestation. The Atlantic Forest occupies a mountainous region paralleling the Atlantic Coast from southern Brazil all the way to northeastern Brazil. This forested region has been settled for centuries and only a small percentage of the original forest remains. What does remain is critical for the preservation of flora and fauna which is indigenous to the region.
In Parana for example, the Atlantic Forest occupies an area of 19,337 square kilometers. Efforts by the state and federal government to preserve what is left in the state have been quite successful. Between 2000 and 2008, only 99 square kilometers of the Atlantic Forest has been lost in the state of Parana (0.5%) and the amount of losses have been diminishing year by year. Losses of the Atlantic Forest have been higher in other Brazilian states along the Atlantic Coast.
The farmers in the state of Parana have also been gradually reducing the amount of agricultural chemicals consumed on their farms and ranches. The state of Parana is the largest corn producing state in Brazil and the second largest soybean producing state, so there is a lot of row crop agriculture in the state. In terms of total tonnage of agricultural chemicals used in the state, Parana is ranked third in Brazil, but in terms of chemicals used per hectare, they are ranked ninth. The difference in ranking is due to the type of crops grown in the state. Tomatoes for example, may require as much as 20 kilograms of chemicals per hectare, but soybeans might require only 2 kilograms of chemicals per year.
The farmers in the state have also been very good in recycling their used chemical containers. In 2009 alone, the farmers in the state recycled four thousand tons of used chemical containers, which is one of the highest percentages in Brazil.
Another part of sustainability is the reduced use of fire to clear land or renovate pastures. In 2009, the state of Parana registered 1,090 fires in both forested areas and crop areas. This is high compared to other southern Brazilian states such as Santa Catarina where 171 fires were reported or Rio Grande do Sul where 204 fires were reported, but it is very low compared to states such as Mato Grosso. The main reason for the higher number of fires in Parana compared to other southern states is the fact that a lot of sugarcane is grown in northern Parana and very little sugarcane is grown in the other two states. Fire is commonly used to burn off the dry leaves of the sugarcane before workers harvest the cane by hand. The practice results in a lot of pollution and it is being gradually phased out as mechanical harvesting takes over. Most of the fires in the state are believed to be burning of sugarcane.
Another pillar of sustainability is more equitable distribution of rural income. The distribution of rural incomes is a little better in Parana than in the rest of Brazil, which is probably due to the fact that the average farm size is much smaller in Parana as compared to states like Mato Grosso for example.
The state of Parana does not have new land that can be brought into agricultural production so it has been forced to do better with what they have and up to this point, it seems to be working.