70 thousand farmers trained by the Aplique Bem program

The Apply Well Program, an initiative of the Agronomic Institute (IAC) in partnership with UPL, celebrates 13 years having already trained more than 70 thousand producers and employees of agricultural companies on the correct application of pesticides to different crops. The program has already gone beyond the borders of Brazil and is now successfully carried out in Colombia, Mexico, Vietnam, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast.

The model adopted by Aplique Bem for training farmers is unprecedented in Brazil. The program has five itinerant laboratories – called mobile tech. Four of them travel throughout the national territory, while one vehicle is intended exclusively for the so-called fruit circuit in the interior of the State of São Paulo. Trainings are free.

“Instead of taking farmers and employees to the classroom, we take the classroom to them. This training model not only increases worker participation but also allows practice to better retain learning. We also do not do classes larger than 20 people to avoid compromising the quality of the content”, says doctor in agronomy Hamilton Ramos, scientific researcher at IAC and coordinator of the program.

“It is a provision of services for agriculture. Aplique Bem brings knowledge to the field for better use of technology and rational use of agricultural pesticides, contributing to the production of safe and quality food, optimizing production and reducing expenses, in addition to providing more safety for those who apply it and less impact on the environment environment”, says Cláudia Barreto, stewardship manager at UPL Brasil.

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The benefits of the Aplique Bem program go beyond the correct application of agricultural pesticides, explains Claudia. “Well-trained workers use protective equipment (PPE) correctly and carry out applications appropriately, including with well-regulated application machines. Thus, the entire food production chain benefits: the farmer saves on pesticides, the health and well-being of workers are preserved, the environment is not affected and consumers receive quality food”, she adds.

Another pioneering aspect of Aplique Bem is the adoption and validation of the international standard ISO 16.122 for evaluating the quality of sprayers in use in Brazil. The program was the first to adopt this standard, in 2015.

“We are very proud to run a program that has trained more than 70 people in the field. It's been 13 years since its launch and Aplique Bem continues to play a very important role and, above all, more current than ever. We continually work to ensure that this initiative grows and multiplies with the partnership of our customers, including globally”, says Fábio Torretta, president of UPL in Brazil.