A cultura da mandioca Manihot esculenta Crantz como instrumento de desenvolvimento rural: análise do município de Formiga-MG

Abstract

The cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) production system, practiced by the Padre Trindade Agricultural Association, in the municipality of Formiga-MG, is extremely important, especially for the members of the association, since it induces significant changes in the quality of members' lives. Its relevance is attributed to the participation of fixed and hired labor at the local level, constituting a source of income and subsistence for the region's community. Through the research, it was intended to verify in the association's activities, how cassava cultivation contributes to rural development in the municipality of Formiga-MG, considering the characteristics related to the culture, climate and soil of the region, as well as those related to the production system used. A descriptive and qualitative methodology was adopted; the script questionnaire was applied to the members and it was found that this association belongs to the category of capitalized family producers; its production system is based on the rotation of cassava, soy and corn crops, thus, cassava serves as the main economic income crop. The climate in the municipality of Formiga-MG is suitable for the cultivation of cassava; operations have been carried out in a mechanized manner; soil fertility is increased with the use of chemical fertilizer and liming, and cassava roots are processed in the industry. Over six years of production, the best income in the cassava crop was obtained in 2018, and the cassava starch is destined for commercial transactions in the states of Minas Gerais, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Goiás. It was assumed that the combination of socioeconomic, technological and marketing conditions have a decisive positive impact on production, establishing a vicious circle of encouragement in the association's production process. It was identified that human capital, being constituted with greater predominance by the fundamental level of education, restricts the adoption of new technologies in the production system. It is noteworthy that the association, as a private organization, does not have access to assistance in the granting of support, either technical or in monetary value, by the local government and, thus, in order to prosper in its activities, it has made bank loans, at the level at the beginning of its activities, it received funding from a private organization in Germany. It was concluded that the starch sold by the association contributes to the rural development of the municipality of Formiga-MG.