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During the 93rd Farmer's Week, held by the Federal University of Viçosa (UFV), in the city of Zona da Mata Mineira, between the 22nd and 28th of July, the State Secretariat for Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Seapa) offers its own activities and serves to rural producers at a stand with technical staff. This Tuesday morning (25/7), the ministry also signed a technical cooperation agreement with UFV for the implementation of a center for research, development and innovation of beekeeping products.
The Secretary of State for Agriculture, Thales Fernandes, highlights that this is also an opportunity to get closer to producers in the region. “We have several commitments in Viçosa. Here we will ship until Thursday (27/7), receiving rural leaders, mayors, municipal agriculture secretaries and Agriculture System partners to increasingly strengthen our agribusiness, generating income, employment and dignity for people in Minas Gerais”, he says.
The cooperation agreement between Seapa and the Federal University of Viçosa (UFV) meets the demand of beekeepers presented at the Technical Chamber of Bee Products, which is part of the State Council for Agricultural Policies (Cepa), linked to the secretariat. In this council, the productive sector actively participates in the construction of state public policies.
Until the partnership between the department and the university was established, Minas did not have an accredited laboratory for physical-chemical and organoleptic analyzes of beekeeping products, as required by international laws. To export production, it was necessary to pay for laboratory services outside the state and even abroad, which increased costs.
From now on, beekeepers from Minas Gerais will be able to contract analyzes at the Food Product Analysis Laboratory, linked to the UFV Food Technology Department, which will charge a price lower than the market price for the service, for the maintenance of the research center.
“One of the biggest bottlenecks today, in relation to products with higher added value, such as cheese, cachaça, olive oil, wine and honey, is laboratory analysis. We have the Bambuí beekeeping hub, for example, with some of the largest companies in the segment in the state, which export honey, propolis, royal jelly, and need to hire this service in Germany. And also an itinerant beekeeping in Minas, with producers who invest, have good productivity and a high quality product. So, we need to show the world the quality of Minas Gerais production”, assesses the Secretary of Agriculture.
Another point foreseen in the agreement is the promotion of training and qualifications aimed at actors in the production chain, in addition to technical events for scientific dissemination and the promotion of dialogue between researchers and beekeeping professionals. The laboratory will also be a reference in the diagnosis of bee diseases.
According to estimates by the Minas Gerais Technical Assistance and Rural Extension Company (Emater-MG), Minas Gerais honey production is 6,1 thousand tons per year, which corresponds to 12% of the national total. The activity generates 42 thousand direct and indirect jobs in Minas Gerais, 7,9 thousand of which are beekeepers.
In 2022, the state exported 5 thousand tons of bee products, with revenue of US$20,5 million. The main destinations were the United States, Canada, Germany, South Korea and Japan. The information is from the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (Mdic).
According to Thales Fernandes, more partnerships of this type are being studied with universities in Minas Gerais to meet similar demands from other agricultural sectors, such as still cachaças. “I see this as a very big step towards optimizing work, saving time and using the spaces we already have in Minas”, summarizes the secretary.
This Tuesday (25/7), Seapa, in partnership with Hub MG Agro, is holding Hub Conecta Day, as part of the Farmer's Week program. The in-person event, in the Innovation Space of TecnoPARQ/UFV, offers lectures on topics of interest to the fruit growing, coffee growing, milk and aquaculture production chains.
Sustainable technologies aimed at carbon balance for rural properties, zootechnical and financial management for dairy farming, software for information management in agriculture, applications for aquaculture management and management of milk suppliers will also be presented.
After presentations by technicians from the Agriculture System, formed by Seapa and its affiliates (Emater-MG, Epamig and IMA) and partner institutions, there are moments of debate and resolution of doubts, followed by a business round between agricultural companies, startups and researchers.
The Conecta Day Hub has the support of the Faemg/Senar/Inaes System, Tecnoparq/UFV, Novo AgroVentures, the Federal Universities of Itajubá and Alfenas and institutions linked to the Department of Agriculture, Emater-MG, the Research Company Minas Gerais Agriculture (Epamig) and the Minas Gerais Agricultural Institute (IMA).
On Monday (24/7), IMA promoted the 1st State Aquaculture Workshop, with the theme "Ornamental fish farming: a new opportunity". The meeting took place in the auditorium of the Department of Forestry Engineering at UFV and brought together more than 200 people, including producers, professionals in the field, students, teachers and researchers.
Lasting four hours in total, the lectures covered topics such as the characterization of Zona da Mata as a producer of ornamental fish, health and biosecurity of production and transport, and animal welfare. At the end, the Secretary of Agriculture and other authorities participated in a round table and answered questions about the activity.
Minas is known as the "water tank of Brazil" because it is the birthplace of important rivers and river basins for the country. In 2022, general fish farming in the state registered 54,7 thousand tons, an increase of 11,4% compared to the previous year, according to data from the Brazilian Fish Farming Association (Peixe BR).
In ornamental fish farming, Minas Gerais' Zona da Mata stands out as the largest national producer, with annual production of more than 10 million fish, accounting for 70% of the national total. According to the Association of Aquaculturists and Specialized Companies of Minas Gerais (Peixe MG), the region has more than 300 families working directly in the activity and generates income of approximately R$15 million per year.
This Tuesday morning (25/7), secretary Thales Fernandes was alongside other authorities, such as the president of Emater-MG, Otávio Maia, and the rector of UFV, Demetrius David da Silva, at the opening of the 10th Week of Rural Women, also part of the Farmer's Week program.
Promoted by the technical assistance company, the meeting takes place until Thursday (27/7) and brings together around 900 rural producers, from 46 municipalities in the regional units of Viçosa, Muriaé, Cataguases, Ponte Nova, Manhuaçu and Juiz de Fora.
“Women are a real workforce in agriculture, largely responsible for organizing agribusiness activities. The mainstay of the field, currently, are rural producers”, comments Secretary Thales.
UFV Farmer's Week is considered the largest university rural extension event in Latin America and annually brings together thousands of producers at the university's Viçosa campus, where visitors can find information about new agricultural technologies, food processing, legislation, trends for agribusiness, rural entrepreneurship, among various subjects.
In 2023, the week's theme is “Inclusive and sustainable economic growth: a new look at agriculture”. In addition to courses and lectures on increasing productivity with sustainability, the program includes dairy tournaments, trade in seedlings and ornamental plants, a crafts fair and artistic and cultural activities.
Throughout the event, Agriculture System technicians are on duty at a stand to assist rural producers, answer questions and provide clarifications about the Government of Minas Gerais programs and actions aimed at the agricultural sector.
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