Carrot production is the theme of an Epagri workshop in Santa Catarina

The municipalities of Curitibanos, Frei Rogério, Lebon Régis, Fraiburgo and Caçador had around 200 carrot producers in the 2022/23 harvest, in an area of ​​approximately 630 hectares. During that period, this agricultural culture generated more than R$20 million in the region, according to Epagri estimates.

This story has faced ups and downs since the first carrot gardens were established in the region, in 1964, with the arrival of Japanese immigrants to Frei Rogério. “The arrival of immigrants aimed to bring the culture of vegetable and fruit cultivation, creating new production systems”, says Adriana Francisco, rural extensionist at Epagri in Frei Rogério. 

Adriana describes that over the years, carrot cultivation lost ground in the region, “only a few producers remained in the activity, even in small quantities”. In 2004 the scenario began to change, with a resumption of vegetable planting. In 2010, the first carrot washing points were installed in Frei Rogério, which facilitated marketing and encouraged planting. “From 2022 onwards, there will be an increasing increase in the planting area”, reveals the extension agent.

1nd Workshop

To stimulate this production chain that has been expanding, the Epagri office in Curitibanos organized the 1st Workshop on carrot production. The event took place on June 4, in the auditorium of the local Municipal Education Department, with the presence of 57 people, including producers and technicians.

The workshop was held in partnership with Embrapa and the city councils of Curitibanos and Frei Rogério and raised the sector's demands. One of the requests was to carry out Agricultural Climate Risk Zoning (Zarc) for carrots for winter planting, in addition to testing varieties and planting dates based on the region's climatic conditions.

The event featured two lectures. Lizz Kezzy de Morais, researcher at Embrapa Hortaliças, spoke about “Future perspectives for carrot breeding”. Agnaldo Donizete Ferreira de Carvalho, researcher at Embrapa Cerrados, spoke about “Carrot production in Brazil”, covering all stages of the production cycle, mainly in the Minas Gerais region, the largest producer in Brazil.

Visits were also made to commercial crops in the municipality. According to Adriana, on this occasion the researchers raised demands from the sector for the development of scientific studies regarding carrot cultivation.