Cotton plantations rehearse return to Paraná

At the end of the first half of this year, producer and agronomist Leandro Yuji Izu, from Assaí, in the northern region of Paraná, opened, together with a partner, a consultancy company aimed at farmers who are interested in growing cotton. The company appears 30 years after the peak of culture in the State, in a new context. In the past, Paraná was the largest national producer of fiber. But in the early 1990s, the voracity of the boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis) and climate problems led cotton growers to exchange lint for soybeans, which were beginning to establish themselves in crops in Paraná.

With cultivar technology more consolidated and the boll weevil under control, the feather is rehearsing its return to Paraná, even if still timidly. According to the Brazilian Association of Cotton Producers (Abrapa), in the 2018/19 harvest, 700 hectares were planted in the State. In the following harvest, 2019/20, this area increased to 1,2 hectares and, in the last cycle (2020/21), it reduced to 800 hectares. This inflection has an explanation in the international market, in which soybean and corn prices are quite attractive.

"The moment is exceptional for grains. Last year soybeans occupied more area, but as the harvest progressed, the price of cotton also rose", observes the president of the Association of Cotton Growers of Paraná (Acopar), Almir Montecelli.

Not only did it rise, it stood above competing cultures. According to a survey by the Center for Advanced Studies in Applied Economics (Cepea), linked to Esalq/USP, in the last two years the price of cotton lint has more than doubled, rising from R$83,06 in October 2019 to R$172 in September 2021. For comparison purposes, during the same period the price of a bag of soy went from R$88,25 to R$172,02, registering a smaller variation in relation to cotton.

According to Acopar's technical report, the performance of cotton in the 2020/21 harvest in relation to soybeans shows that the profitability of the former was greater. "Cotton characterized as a normal crop planting, as a summer crop, resulted in a profitability of R$17,4 [per bushel] on average across 11 crops [monitored by the entity]. However, the result was much higher considering the four crops more productive. In these cases, the net margin rose to R$ 25,5 thousand", points out the document.

Productivity

These figures can still improve. This is because the average productivity of cotton in Paraná is below that of other producing states. "Paraná has harvested an average of 206 arrobas/hectare. In Brazil, 290 arrobas/hectare is the minimum allowed", says the director of Acopar. The explanation lies in the lower production cost in Paraná compared to the rest of Brazil. "Here the cost of implementing the crop is lower. We apply zero fungicides, while in the rest of the country there are seven or more", says Montecelli.

Therefore, implementing a crop on Paraná soil costs between R$12 and R$14/hectare, while it practically doubles, around R$25/hectare, in other places. Furthermore, according to Acopar, the average number of insecticide applications in Paraná is 11,7, five of which are against the boll weevil alone. In the Brazilian Cerrado region, where there is a large production of the plume, this number exceeds 24 applications, 19 of which are solely for pest control.

Another advantage of cotton from Paraná, according to Montecelli, is that our crops are the first to be harvested. "So there's always a market and a good price", he says.

Soil ally

Cotton brings advantages when used in rotation with other crops, such as soybeans and corn, interrupting the cycle of pests and diseases in the crop and optimizing nutrient absorption. At Izu's consulting company, this is one of the biggest attractions for new cotton farmers. "We are trying to change the producer's mind so that he can include this rotation, instill in his thinking the importance of correcting the soil. One of our company's biggest advertisements is cotton rotation", he states.

Izu preaches what he does. In the last summer harvest, he rotated soybeans, cotton and corn. This year, the producer achieved profitability of R$29 thousand/hectare with cotton crops, R$8,7 thousand with corn and R$6,2 thousand with soybeans. “It was the best summer since I returned from Cerrado to Paraná in 2017”, he celebrates.

Versatile, culture needs to gain scale in Paraná

Cotton has two products: the feather, mainly used to make yarn and fabrics, and the seed, used as animal feed and can be transformed into oil. In the current scenario, in which feed production costs have followed the significant appreciation of agricultural commodities such as soybeans and corn, this input has also increased in value.

"There was a good appreciation [of the seed]. In the first contract we made with the processing company in São Paulo, we weren't worried about that. The seed paid for the processing and there was a surplus", points out the producer and president of the Sindicato Rural de Cambará (Norte Pioneiro ), Aristeu Sakamoto.

Until the year before last, the São Paulo processor kept the seed in exchange for the service. However, last year, half of the seed paid for processing. At the end of September this year, a ton of cotton seed was sold in markets in São Paulo for more than R$2. “It practically doubled in value,” notes Sakamoto. A "lover of cotton", as he describes himself, the union leader experienced the first phase of the culture in Paraná, 30 years ago. Regarding the current situation, he recommends caution.

"The idea of ​​returning cotton has to be done with our feet on the ground. Today we have a partnership with Instituto Brasileiro do Algodão and Acopar, who sought partnership with people from the former Iapar, for technical assistance, and also with Embrapa. We are well advised , expanding the technical assistance network. I think this work will gradually grow and create more opportunities for cooperatives to become interested in culture. But let's take it easy, there are still some bottlenecks to be resolved", notes Sakamoto.

Among the bottlenecks that need to be overcome is the absence of a processing industry in Paraná. In the last harvest, all of the state's production was sent to a ginnery in São Paulo. In the view of the president of Acopar, Almir Montecelli, the way to resolve this issue would be to increase production within the State, in a way that would enable the existence of a processing industry on Paraná soil. To achieve this objective, one of the entity's strategies is to promote cultivation through technical assistance. "Today we have 10 demonstration units aimed at producers and technicians interested in learning about the culture," he says. In the leader's opinion, an area of ​​20 thousand hectares would be enough to supply the State.