Canola Crop in Family Agriculture

Based on a promising future scenario, with increase in the productivity capacity of biodiesel in Brazil encouraged by its mixture to common diesel in even larger percentages, the demand for raw material to supply the producer industry is even larger. As the production is based on the use of vegetable oils, the supply of the industries is directly linked to the oil grain supplied by farmers.

According to the Programa Nacional de Produção e Uso de Biodiesel - PNPB, established by the Federal Government, as it rules Normative Instruction 01 of the Ministry of Agrarian Development - MAD, the increase of the market for biodiesel meets the guidelines of crops diversification and the insertion of the Family Agriculture in the process of oil vegetable crops, to allow value aggregation and income to this raw material. In order to meet these principles, the Programa de Produção de Canola BSBIOS was created.

According to results obtained in the last three crops (2008, 2009 and 2010), BSBIOS has enlarged the number of family farmers inserted in its program of crop diversification. Family farmer Edevaldo Lago, from Capinzal, in the country of Passo Fundo, who has been growing canola for three consecutive crops, is the evidence of this work. In the crop of 2010, it has a 10 ha acreage, where for this area, BSBIOS provides necessary technical assistance, and guarantees commercialization of the production with pre-established prices before sowing. According to Edevaldo, canola fit well in this productive system, thus it allows crop rotation, better use of the equipment in the winter, besides having an extra income in an area that would stand idle in the winter. Yet, the farmer guarantees that the equipments he has in the 45 ha property were enough to the performance of the crop, without additional expenses as for the purchase of equipments.

As family farmer Edevaldo, several family farmers where BSBIOS acts, direct or indirectly has opted for canola crop diversification. Allied to the fact of family farmers have technological pattern, security in commercialization, having agro-climatic zoning and technical support necessary by the technical team of BSBIOS, canola stands for a safe alternative of diversification and income aggregation, fundamental assumptions of the PNPB as for the insertion of Family Agriculture in this process.

with the support of entities linked to the Family Agriculture, like the Sindicato do Trabalhadores Rurais de Passo Fundo, Emater/RS as a rural body, entities of research and teaching, like Embrapa Trigo and University of Passo Fundo (UPF), financial cost-credit institutions and others linked to the rural mean, the development program has grown in such a sustainable manner, what guarantees a promising future.

This way, with technical support, adequate technology pattern, market guarantees and the agronomic importance of the crop, canola emerges as a promising alternative to provide more income aggregation in family crops in the winter. Since family agriculture has a consolidated technological pattern, the crop fits perfectly in areas already productive with summer crops like soybean, integrating in productive systems.

Fábio Júnior Benin

Development Sector Coordinator of BSBIOS