Laboratories that are interested in becoming Embrapa Cerrados partners should pay attention. The deadline is open for companies and organizations in general whose activities include the provision of routine laboratory analysis services for agronomic and/or environmental purposes to apply to join the Embrapa BioAS Network. Registration continues until April 05th and must be made in accordance with the guidelines expressed in Public Invitation No. 01/2021 available at www.embrapa.br/cerrados/licitacoes.
The institution whose registration is approved will sign a confidentiality agreement so that it can continue to participate in the process. The qualification provides theoretical and practical distance training. “In view of the great demand and the pandemic, we worked on a new format for the course, in the distance learning (EaD) style, to better serve all interested parties. The success of this new technology depends greatly on commercial laboratories, which is why Embrapa considers it essential to train them with excellence”, stated Embrapa researcher, Ieda Mendes.
In parallel to the technical training stages of the laboratories, there is also an interaction process aimed at qualification in terms of business fundamentals and establishment of contracts. “We are implementing the second phase of the BioAS Technology Business Model and Partnerships. In the pilot phase, which began commercially on July 23rd last year, a group of eight companies participated in the process, a stage that was fundamental for structuring the technical and business operation of exploring the technology. In this second phase, the scaling of BioAS Technology will be based on the expansion of the Embrapa BioAS Network and its conversion from a commercial network to a large innovation network, structured to operate in commercial and technological development terms”, explained Chang Wilches, coordinator of Innovation Support at Embrapa Cerrados.
For the general manager of Embrapa Cerrados, Sebastião Pedro, BioAS Technology is an important vector for guiding productivity combined with the sustainability of agro-productive systems. “This occurs because the technology associates the measurement of biological activity in soils with chemical and physical information, parameterized by geographic locations. Furthermore, the innovation model serves as an essential reference for other operations involving new technologies generated within the scope of Embrapa Cerrados”.
The entry into operation of the new laboratories within the Embrapa BioAS Network should take place in August. Currently, eight laboratories from five states are already part of the network: Goiás, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, São Paulo and Paraná. “This technology is the missing tool to close the diagnostic cycle”, stated Renato Alves Filho, technical manager and national director of the Soils & Plants Laboratory, in Sorriso (MT). According to him, with the training received by Embrapa, it was possible to reproduce the method with precise values in the company's laboratory.
The bioanalysis technology was developed by Embrapa and adds the biological component to routine soil analysis. It consists of the analysis of two enzymes (beta-glucosidase and arylsulfatase) that are related to the productive potential and sustainability of land use. They are associated, respectively, with the carbon and sulfur cycles and function as bioindicators of soil health. High quantities of these bioindicators indicate adequate and sustainable production systems or soil management practices. On the other hand, low values serve as a warning for the farmer to reevaluate the production system and adopt good management practices.
One of the main advantages of the technology, according to experts, is precisely to anticipate changes, positive or negative, that are occurring in the organic matter of the soil due to the management adopted on the property. This occurs, according to the researcher, because bioindicators are more sensitive than chemical and physical indicators. Furthermore, changes in microbial communities can be detected more quickly. “Bioanalysis is like a soil blood test that allows us to anticipate health problems that were previously asymptomatic”, explains researcher Ieda Mendes.
BioAS Technology, which involves basic and complete bioanalysis, has been available to Brazilian farmers since July 23, 2020. The laboratories that participate in the network connect to Embrapa servers through a system called the Product Quality Interpretation Module. Soil, which also involves the calculation of Soil Quality Indexes (IQS). IQS are calculated based on chemical and biological properties together (IQSFertbio) and separately (IQSBiological and IQSChemical). The Biological IQSB calculation represents the basic BioAS, where the soil nutrient cycling function is also provided. The complete BioAS is expressed by IQSBiológico, IQSQuímico and IQSFertBio, in addition to the cycling, supply and storage functions of soil nutrients.
The reference parameters and indicator tables involved in BioAS Technology are systematically updated, based on Embrapa's network of experiments for calibrating and developing this technology. With this, laboratory customers will always have reports containing results with interpretation updated by Embrapa, harvest by harvest. The technology is readily available for Cerrado soils, specifically for annual crops (grains and fibers), and new areas/biomes, as well as crops, will be progressively covered. Considering the annual crops mentioned, the BioAS Technology offer is expected to be launched for the soils of the State of Paraná in the second quarter of 2021.
Access the Public Invitation notice here
Access here more information about the technology and the list of qualified laboratories
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