I was very excited to visit various pork facilities while on my travels. We met at a state pork cooperative very similar to the state associations here in the United States. The non-profit organization consisted of both a producer's group and a cooperative that buys and sells hogs and various supplies. The cooperative even has its own slaughterhouse to improve efficiency. The producer's group currently has 110 members that represent 75,000 sows.
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| Cooperativa dos Suinocultores de Ponte Nova e Regiao (Pork Cooperative in Ponte Nova, Brazil) |
The producer's group lobbies for many agricultural issues Brazil faces. One of the main issues they face is what to do with manure waste from large operations. Many farmers have started using biodigestor technology. Brazil is starting to see a small push to end gestation stalls, but it is not a specific organization against it as it is in the U.S. The producer's group feels that they will be able to change with the culture without any controversy.
The Brazilian Association of Swine Producers, a national organization, started a campaign in 2010 to increase per capita consumption of pork by 3 kg or 6.5 lbs. This goal was met within 3 years and they hope to again increase consumption 3 kg by 2015 to reach an annual per captia consumption of 18 kg or approximately 40 lbs. 70% of the pork consumed in Brazil is further processed into wieners, ham, and sausages due to the warm climate.
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| A pig is cute in all countries of the world! |
I was very impressed with the sophistication and integration of the cooperative. The pork industry is striving and will continue to advance in Brazil due to their efforts. I think this is another aspect of Brazilian agriculture that we in the United States can learn from.
