Brazilian state plans to increase use of bio-pesticides, reduce agrochemicals

A plan has been prepared to introduce biological controls to check plagues impacting agriculture production in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The document, prepared with the help of various entities in the agricultural sector, was completed last month, and is now with the state secretary for Production and Small Farming, Fernando Mendes Lamas.

The document, prepared after three months of research and meetings, aims to reduce the use of agrochemicals, propose sustainable solutions and cut down on production costs.

The plan contains short-term goals (one to two years) that stipulate mapping of technologies and biological controls available in Brazil to check major plagues that affect Mato Grosso do Sul. It includes setting up bio-factories, training labor, conducting research programs and teaching farmers about several productive chains in the farm business.

Professor Ruy Caldas of the Catholic University of Dom Bosco, who was the coordinator of the committee that developed the plan, said the problems that can be controlled through biological means were meticulously mapped. The plan also aimed to diagnose the impact of plagues and diseases on the overall economy of the state and its profitability.

The document also proposes preparation of annual plans for investment in biological control technologies; setting up public-private partnerships that can act as a basis for sustainable production; formulating public policy for biological control in agricultural production and sustainable agri-business; and skilling human resources in strategic areas to enhance local capacities for developing biological control technologies, etc.

"We have some serious problems and need to modify our current model of agriculture by cutting down the use of agrochemicals. The way forward is biological control, a tool of fundamental importance that can change our agriculture. Now the plan needs to take the form of projects,” declared secretary Fernando Lamas.

“We have the technologies that producers can use and approach the problem in an organized way. We need to set priorities and ensure the farmer uses the data and incorporates the recommendations in the production system,” the secretary said, adding he believed that by the next season, a number of steps will be taken towards introducing biological control.