Fruit and vegetable producers receive certification in good agricultural practices

“Producing safe food” - this is the main objective of the 49 producers from Serra Gaúcha who received on the afternoon of this Monday, the 28th, the certificate of the Pilot Program of Good Agricultural Practices in Fruits and Vegetables, the result of a partnership between Senar -RS and Embrapa Uva e Vinho, in Bento Gonçalves (RS).

Since 2017, the group of producers has joined the Together to Compete Program and accepted the challenge of participating in the training of the pilot class in Rio Grande do Sul in the implementation of this methodology developed by Senar, in partnership with professor Claud Ivan Goellner and the Embrapa researcher Grape and Wine, Marcos Botton, professional references on the subject. One of the practical results of the Program is the use of the field notebook, in which the producer records all the activities carried out in production, serving to control traceability and also as a document for possible audits.  

“It was an extensive agenda of training and consultancy that guaranteed this certification. In addition to good production practices, the producers involved received information for business management. And this will only add value to the properties, providing the market and the consumer with safe food”, highlighted Angélica Brandalise, project manager in Horticulture and Viticulture at Sebrae Serra Gaúcha, at the certificate delivery ceremony.

For Umberto Pizzolotto de Moraes, coordinator of Rural Professional training at the Technical Division of Senar, the future of the program will involve greater approximation and cooperation with Embrapa. “We need to put technicians more in touch with research knowledge and take this to the field. This way, we will reduce the doubts of our producers”, he anticipated. 

The program

Marcos Botton, who together with professor Claud Goelner created the teaching material used in the training, believes that this is an important moment for small fruit and vegetable producers. “Through the training, they have information and practical tools to implement Good Agricultural Practices on their properties”, he highlighted. The researcher reinforces that the consumption of fruits and vegetables is essential for a healthy diet, thus reducing queues for the treatment of diseases in the single health system. Training producers to produce safe food will increase the sector's competitiveness, ensuring the supply of quality products on consumers' tables, in addition to generating employment and income in the countryside.  

As a graduation gift, the certified producers attended lectures on “The Importance and Advantages of Traceability”, presented by Paripassu’s regional commercial coordinator, Matheus Schneider, and on “Creativity and Innovation”, given by Embrapa Uva e Vinho researcher, Marcos Button.