A dairy farming in Ceará managed to accumulate growth of almost 63% in production between 2015 and 2019, going from 489.3 million to 797.4 million liters per year, according to IBGE data. And it now has the possibility of advancing at a faster pace, considering the recent above-average rainfall; the consolidation of a powdered milk factory in the municipality of Morada Nova; and the arrival of water from the São Francisco River to the territory of Ceará, which will allow greater water security for pasture cultivation in irrigated perimeters.
All of this could open up space for a significant increase in production in the coming years, considering that the regional market has good demand – it is estimated that Ceará currently imports around 500 thousand liters of milk per day from the Center-South region of the country, mainly in form of derivatives. The trend is that in 2020 production will exceed that of the previous year and, if the average growth of recent years is maintained, Ceará will reach the production of 1 billion liters of milk by the end of 2021.
“Milk is a very traditional and important economic chain in Ceará, which is produced even in the extreme conditions of the semi-arid region and on properties in all 184 municipalities. For this reason, we at the State Government have a great interest in supporting the segment in order to increase production per animal and also add greater value to products”, says Secretary Francisco de Queiroz Maia Júnior, head of the Secretariat for Economic Development and Labor (Sedet).
Aware of this growth potential, the Government of Ceará, through Sedet, included among its priority programs one that aims to promote the expansion and modernization of dairy activity in the state, boosting the production, services, inputs and industry segments, whose objective is to reach 300 producers through Technical and Management Assistance (ATeG) actions; and another 500 people including producers, technicians and collaborators with training on new technologies for different levels of the production chain and business management.
“We believe that the technical and managerial assistance program (ATeG), currently operationalized by Senar/CE with a focus on professionalization, improving production efficiency and milk quality, will be a reference for the sector and will effectively contribute to the formation of the technical team specialized in serving producers”, observes Silvio Carlos, executive secretary of Agribusiness at Sedet.
The action, according to him, will also focus on genetic improvement of the herd through artificial insemination; implementation of 30 milk cooling tanks per group of producers served; support and regularization of dairy production; and marketing of products from the state of Ceará, in an action that combines several initiatives: SISBI, SIM and Selo Arte – in partnership with the Ceará Agricultural Defense Agency (Adagri), linked to the Sedet system. The secretariat also works to attract new companies producing products and inputs demanded by the dairy chain to Ceará.
Small producers
It is estimated that in Ceará, dairy farming is distributed across more than 74 thousand rural properties – the vast majority of which are run by small producers, such as Francisco José Leitão, from Sítio Retiro, in Morada Nova. There, he, his wife, Raimunda Diógenes, and another employee raise 36 cows that produce almost 400 liters of milk per day.
“In mid-2009, even without the adoption of new production practices, the property was producing a loss of R$ 2 thousand per month. Ninety days later we came out of the red and in just a few weeks we were celebrating a profit of R$ 1,200”, recalls Francisco Leitão. “From then on we began to improve genetics, follow the latest developments in the sector and productivity, which was four liters per animal, increased to eleven today.”
To obtain this daily amount of milk, Francisco Leitão reports that he uses less than 3 hectares of the property in the irrigated rotational grazing system. This technique, in practice, allows instead of needing almost 3 hectares to raise just one cow in the caatinga environment, it is possible to maintain up to 12 animals in a single irrigated hectare, with gains in production and ease of management.
The system is currently adopted in many properties in Ceará. “There are more than 10 thousand hectares of irrigated pasture in Ceará and around 70% is on small properties, which cultivate up to three hectares”, estimates agronomist Zuza de Oliveira, who has participated in the development of irrigated agribusiness projects for the Government of Ceará for twenty years.
Milk is an advantageous business also from a social point of view, as it maintains production 365 days a year, moving a large chain of inputs, products and services from the field to the industry.
powdered milk factory
The operation of a powdered milk factory of the Betânia Group in the municipality of Morada Nova, expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2021, will be a milestone for the evolution of dairy activity in Ceará, according to agronomist Zuza de Oliveira, ensuring the capture of milk from producers when there is good rain and milk production is higher than what dairies are traditionally capable of processing.
“In practice, the possibility of transforming milk into powder ensures that producers can purchase any surplus production”, explains the agronomist. “Currently the Northeast region consumes 52% of powdered milk in Brazil, and this volume all comes from the Center-South. A factory in Ceará brings advantages even in relation to shipping costs”, explains the agronomist.
According to Zuza de Oliveira, in addition to the Bethany The state currently has around 75 certified dairies – including 57 cheesemakers in operation and another 70 in the health certification process with Adagri/Sedet. “This proves the vigor and dynamism of milk production in Ceará, which is an activity with significant social function in terms of employment and income and with great economic potential in the state”, he summarizes.
The information is from the Ceará State Government.
Source: https://www.milkpoint.com.br/noticias-e-mercado/giro-noticias/pecuaria-de-leite-acumula-crescimento-de-quase-63-no-ceara-221246/
