Anuário Brasileiro do Arroz 2011 - Unemat

Rio Grande do Sul Rice Institute (Irga). In the current season,
the result derived from the rice fields is expected to
reach 8.832 million tons, with productivity rates reaching
a record average of 7.600 kilos per hectare.
The performance is directly linked to climatic conditions,
which favored timely plantings, within the period
recommended by researcher teams. Dry weather conditions,
along with plenty of sunshine and dams filled with the
winter rains, ensured efficient irrigation. Cláudio Brayer
Pereira, president of Irga, explains that the behavior of
the climate broadened the positive technology impact on
the cultivations, improving management requirements
throughout the different stages of the rice fields.
On the other hand, Renato Rocha, president of the
Federation of Rice Growers’ Associations of Rio Grande
do Sul (Federarroz), emphasizes that, inside the farm
gate, producers have been investing in different technologies,
which translates into high yields and quality
kernels. “Our real problem is income. The production cost
is high, taxes levied on the inputs and the crop itself are
exaggerated, there are no incentives for producing, notwithstanding
our exceptional share of 65% in the entire
national crop and 90% in all quality kernels consumed in
Brazil”, he complains.
THE SIZE OF THE CHALLENGE The president
of Federarroz, Renato Rocha, mentions that the challenge
of Rio Grande do Sul boils down to the question of exporting
at least 10% of its production volumes (equivalent to
almost 900 thousand tons in the 2011/12 season), along
with investments in warehouses and efforts to recover the
prices to levels compatible with the production costs. “Over
the first four months in 2011, producers incurred losses of
up to R$ 10 per sack, if we compare average production
costs and sales prices”, he points out.
In the president’s view, taxation, deficiencies in warehousing
infrastructure and logistics, along with the
absence of an agricultural policy focused on the sector,
besides excessive rice imports, are to blame for the
crises. “This opens the gate of the Brazilian market to
unfair competition from Mercosur countries and affects
the competitive edge of our product, both at home and
abroad”, he explains. He also insists that, via national
and state sectorial chambers, the production chain is
sparing no effort in the construction of appropriate policies
focused on selling the crop, whilst ensuring profitability
and a reduction to field costs, all measures that
are bound to broaden our capacity to compete with our
major competitors.