Epamig and Embrapa present new coffee cultivars in Minas Gerais

The current scenario of Brazilian coffee farming was presented to technicians and producers from the Serra da Canastra – MG region, during the Technological Tour event. The meeting took place this week, through a partnership between AP Agrícola, Epamig, Embrapa and Syngenta, bringing together around 140 participants. 

In the morning, in Piumhi - MG, lectures were presented that addressed new management technologies and the current scenario of the coffee market. In the afternoon, a field day took place at the AP Agrícola experimental farm in São Roque de Minas, where new cultivars developed by coffee research institutions supported by the Café Research Consortium, of which Embrapa is the organizer, were presented. 

The field results encouraged the participants, as of the 19 cultivars planted in the experimental field installed in October 2021, eleven showed higher productivity than the Catuaí IAC 62 cultivar, which was planted as a control, that is, so that the comparative parameters could be observed, as it is the most used cultivar in the region. Compared to this, the cultivars that stood out the most so far were Obatã Amarelo IAC 4739, MGS Paraíso 2 and MGS Ametista, which presented an estimated productivity 40% higher, estimated at 104, 94, 91 bags per hectare, respectively. These values ​​refer to the sum of the 2023 harvest and the estimated 2024 harvest.

According to researcher Gladyson Carvalho, from Epamig Sul, the use of new cultivars brings profit not only through increased productivity, but also through savings caused by the reduction in the application of fungicides and nematicides, as these cultivars have different levels of resistance to rust. and, some of them, resistance to root-knot nematodes. 

André Ferreira, a researcher at Embrapa Café, said that experimental trials like this were installed in over 40 locations, in 39 municipalities in Minas Gerais. He added that other field days will still be held in the first half of 2024, aiming to disseminate the results of the new cultivars throughout the state. The research project is funded by Fapemig and has researchers Vinicius Andrade, from Epamig Sul, and Guilherme Abreu, from Embrapa Café on the team, who also participated in the event.