Partnership between agricultural startup and industry brings traceability to citrus growers

Created by the startup Elysios from Rio Grande do Sul, Caderno de Campo Digital is a solution on the Demetra platform focused mainly on family farming. Through it, rural producers, their technicians and their cooperative can help them improve their cultivation systems. Through planning, recording and monitoring, real-time and geolocated monitoring is possible.

BioCitrus is located in Montenegro, Rio Grande do Sul, and began implementing the traceability system in January 2020. Making it available free of charge to its partner citrus growers, currently more than 70 producers in Vale do Caí are able to guarantee more safety in production and in a more sustainable way for the entire BioCitrus value chain.

One of these producers is Cristian Pertile, from Salvador do Sul. Supplier of oranges and bergamots for BioCitrus, he has used the system since the beginning of the project, providing basic cultivation data to provide traceability from the origin of the fruit to processing in the industry. “The Elysios project, which BioCitrus provided us, was very welcome, as it was information that came together, information from the property and the industry. Today, we can no longer think about taking notes with paper and pen, having technology at our disposal to manage the property and share online with technicians in case of doubts or problems that may arise during cultivation”, highlights Cristian.

The platform allows the farmer to be alert to cultivation needs and planning, while the technology helps in gathering estimates and controlling variables. Elísio Krug, producer integrated with BioCitrus, highlights: “Our evaluation is very positive, the way of doing it is very simplified, which makes the work easier”. This agility and delivery of information due to the help of the application results in savings on unnecessary costs of inputs and water.

The solutions developed by the company initially focus on the horticulture and fruit growing sector, and can be adapted according to the needs of each crop. In the case of citrus producers, the objective is to guarantee high quality of the product and certifications for sales, through traceability, pest and disease control, bad weather, among other situations impacting the value chain. Juliane Stefanoni Costa, Environmental and Project Manager at Biocitrus explains: “We understand that the process of implementing traceability is something of relevance for the entire food sector, not just BioCitrus. In our case, knowing what a challenge it would be, we chose the Demetra application, developed by Elysios to track our entire supply chain, as well as providing a tool that assists the producer's day-to-day life in their crops and in the management of their property. The company also focuses on rural succession, which is why it invests in innovation tools for producers as a way of awakening young people's views on citrus farming in the region and facilitating the succession process”, highlights Juliane.

Thus, BioCitrus also offers technical assistance to citrus suppliers, in addition to the installed system. They are producers of oranges, bergamots and green mandarins, directly impacted by the production of essential oil. In the mandarin harvest, for example, the thinning had no destination, and was considered an expense that weighed heavily on the citrus growers' pockets. Today, the company offers a profitable destination for this management called thinning, which still generates profitability, allowing the citrus grower to have up to two incomes per year: one from the green mandarin for the essential oil and the other from the juice in the industry and the fruit destined for the consumer table.

“Currently, due to the circumstances, we have some activities suspended and are evaluating month by month to return to field activities with our suppliers. We had to rethink all the planning that had been established at the beginning of the year. And even with the reduction in pace, we continue with online training, and Elysios continues with the development/improvement of features in the app. We believe that by the end of this year we will reach the agreed target of impacted producers”, concludes Juliane Stefanoni Costa.