Search for new markets and pest control are highlights at the Pecan Sector Chamber meeting

An extensive agenda marked the virtual meeting of the Pecan Sector Chamber this Thursday morning (06/05). Participating in the meeting, which lasted around 3 hours, were representatives of the Brazilian Pecan Farming Institute (IBPecan), National Rural Learning Service (SENAR), National Confederation of Agriculture (CNA), Export Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil), Federation of the Associations of Municipalities of RS (Famurs), Federation of Agricultural Workers (Fetag), Emater, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Mapa), Embrapa Clima Temperado, Federal University of Pelotas (UFPEL), Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development (SEAPDR), producers and entrepreneurs.

The opening of pecan trade from Brazil to China was highlighted by the President of the Sector Chamber and IBPecan, Demian Costa. According to him, thanks to the negotiations that Mapa is carrying out, it was possible to open the export of peeled pecans. And he said that a Chinese mission is expected to come to the country to see the production and industrialization conditions. The market also hopes to open the sale of pecan nuts in the shell. Rio Grande do Sul is the largest producer in the country and should harvest approximately 4.500 tons this year.

The researcher from Embrapa Clima Temperado, Carlos Martins, presented to the participants the advances in the categorization of pecan nuts in the minor-crops (crops with insufficient health support), developed by the group of experts made up of technicians from the southern region of Brazil. Based on the group's negotiations, there was a migration of the crop's subgroup, which moved to subgroup 1B, in the same classification as mango and papaya. The next steps are to present the sector's demand to companies that have products registered for this subgroup, demanding the extension of use of these products for pecan cultivation.

Researcher Dori Nava presented the preliminary results of research carried out by Embrapa Clima Temperado with the scotilid, a beetle that develops galleries in the wood of plants, and which is considered one of the pests that most worries producers. The study carried out in Candiota in an orchard of 87 hectares, identified 28 species of Scolytinae and 1 of Platypodinae. Of these, two species are more common in the hot season and one in the cold season. According to Nava, there is no record of an insecticide that is effective in controlling the beetle.

“Alternatives are the use of traps and the installation of orchards in areas recommended by zoning, adequate soil (it cannot be shallow or waterlogged soil) and correct fertilization,” he says. Nava informs that a manual for identifying pest attacks in some crops, including pecan, is being prepared.

The head of the Agricultural Inputs and Services Division (Disa) of the Secretariat of Agriculture, Rafael Lima, showed the results of reports on 2,4D drift in pecan crops, which are sensitive to hormonal herbicides. From October to December 2020, the seven pecan samples collected had the presence of 2,4D on seven properties in the municipalities of Santiago, Cacequi, Tupanciretã, Itaqui, Livramento and Rio Pardo. “We are working on several fronts: the educational side, the awareness side, the financial side, the civil side and the criminal side. There are several different situations.” And he asked for the support of pecan farmers to register their properties on the secretariat's website. There are currently 18 registered. “The producer registers his property and draws the polygon and can visualize who uses the hormonal product”, highlights Lima. 

Incentives for producers to export pecan nuts were presented by representatives of CNA and Apex-Brasil.

The PEIEX program (Export Qualification Program) served 1200 municipalities in 2020, supporting 4349 companies. “It seeks to give the company the initial qualification to do international business such as documents, price formation, mode of transport. And it’s free”, highlights Gabriel Isaacsoon, from Apex’s South Office. And there are other tools, other courses, that can be accessed here.

Arturo Muttoni, from the National Confederation of Agriculture (CNA), presented the Agro.BR program, launched in March 2020, and which is the result of an agreement between CNA and Apex-Brasil. In Rio Grande do Sul, it is carried out in partnership with Farsul, and aims to raise awareness, train, plan and enable the generation of exports for Brazilian rural entrepreneurs. A training workshop for pecan farmers is planned for the month of June. 

Among the various measures taken by the Sector Chamber is the availability of the Pecan Sector Chamber and IBPecan to assist the GT of experts in discussing and presenting producers' demands regarding the need to register products for use in Pecan cultivation.