Desafios e perspectivas da conversão orgânica de produtores familiares assentados da reforma agrária

Abstract

In the historical context where small producers did not have access to the technical transformations in agriculture driven by the “green revolution”, the organic food market emerges as an important alternative for the economic strengthening of small farmers and beneficiaries of agrarian reform. The work sought to assess the challenges faced by these farmers to participate in the organic food market and achieve consumer credibility regarding the quality of their products, through Social Control Organizations – a mechanism proposed by the Ministry of Agriculture (MAPA) to guarantee organic quality of products commercialized in direct sale (fairs), without certification. The work was a case study and comparative analysis, developed with two producers from the settlements Abril Vermelho and Expedido Ribeiro, located in the Municipality of Santa Bárbara do Pará, metropolitan region of Belém. The research data were collected in technical views of the Feira da Agricultura Familiar Project, belonging to the UFRA in Agrarian Reform Program, and through interviews guided by the questions of the Notebook of the Plan of Organic Management – instrument of the Ministry of Agriculture to support the organic conversion of production systems. The specific objective was to identify the main organizational challenges and strategies adopted in the operations of the conformity assessment bodies and to know the main problems, solutions found and planned changes in the activities developed in the establishments of selected producers. The collected data were analyzed in order to identify the main problems and solutions found by producers in order to meet the compliance requirements of organic production systems, give credibility to their Organizations (OCS) and remain in the market. Among the problems identified, difficulties of an organizational nature stand out, including formal issues for the regularization of OCS and reliability problems that affect the operationalization of “peer views”. However, with the help of an efficient management group, it is possible to make visits possible and check whether there are non-conformities in the production systems, request technical assistance, if necessary, and assess whether or not producers remain in the OCS.