Investor Presentaiton
MVO
NEDERLAND
increase of 23% and 16%, respectively, markedly above the average number
observed for the whole northern region of Minas Gerais (5.83%).20
Air camera shot of Jaiba agricultural lands
The area was developed in two phases. In the first phase, 1800 lots of five
hectares of agricultural land were made available for small scale farmers as an
incentive for poverty reduction. Until now, it is still a challenge to finalise
property papers for these farmers. This results in widespread problems for
farmers regarding access to finance for which property documentation is
required. The second phase of the project consists of larger farm plots of up to
150 hectares. This group of farmers is responsible for almost all of the export
volumes, although smaller producers are increasingly focussed on export as
well. In order to become export ready, they can receive assistance from export
organisations such as Sebrae.
The northern region of Minas Gerais puts effort into positioning itself as a
serious sourcing option. The marketing approach that is chosen refers to
sustainability in some way, but sustainability is not the central issue that is
being focussed on in communication and marketing. The current area is
roughly the size of the Flevopolder in the Netherlands. The local government
aims to expand the productive agglomerate towards an area as big as the size of
the Netherlands, relying on 500 km of canals to irrigate the area. The water used
comes from the São Francisco River.
The producers in the Jaiba area indicated that there is yet another challenge
when it comes to competing for export. This lies in the fact that the already long
road to the port of Santos or Rio de Janeiro is now in some parts a toll road
increasing the costs of transport compared to produce from alternative areas.
ACCESS TO MARKET AND GLOBAL GAP
A development identified during the field visit is the cooperation between large
and small farmers to gain market access. In one example, a large producer of
lime - Claudio Dijkstra, of Dutch descent - is teaming up with a group of small
producers, in the process of becoming Fairtrade certified. According to Dijkstra
(and confirmed by Dutch traders), it is a requirement for export to be Global
Gap certified.
The Brazilian Global GAP offers a possibility for group certification. The first
option is to apply for a Global GAP group certification. This requires an
Internal Management System (IMS), in combination with (self-) assessments
carried out by the individual growers.
20 Mariana G., V Dupin et al. (2018). Land use policies and deforestation in Brazilian tropical dry forests
between 2000 en 2015. Environmental Research Letters, 13, p. 9.
19View entire presentation