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Agribusiness Is Becoming More Productive, although More Instruction Is Needed
07/27/2018 - 13h20
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MAURO ZAFALON
SÃO PAULO
Brazilian agriculture and cattle raising is becoming more and more modern, increasing productivity while simultaneously preserving areas within agricultural properties. When it comes to other aspects, however, such as technical assistance for producers and literacy programs, there is still plenty of room for improvement.
That's what the Brazilian Agriculture and Cattle Raising Census - conducted by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) and released on Thursday (the 26th) - revealed.
Despite not revealing any information connected to production, the preliminary report did contain information on the amount of land that has been put to use in the name of agribusiness. A total of 16 million hectares have been incorporated into agricultural activities over the past 11 years.
The census revealed that there are 4.5 million properties - made up of no more than 100 hectares each - that own a total 72 million hectares. A mere 2,400 establishments, with plots of land that have an area of at least 10,000 hectares each, own another 52 million hectares.
The latest numbers concerning grain and protein crops indicate that Brazil's evolution is not just the result of the incorporation of new areas, but also the result of an increase in terms of productivity.
Most farms have embraced new production methods as well as techniques.
The IBGE data also demonstrates that farmers are concerned about the soil, a key ingredient for high-quality production. From 2006 to 2017, no-till farming increased by 83%, reaching 33 million hectares.
Increased productivity and the incorporation of new techniques, however, can only go so far without higher literacy rates. Despite the fact that times are changing and producers are expected to know how to operate modern machines, 23.5% of them still don't know how to read or write.
Translated by THOMAS MATHEWSON