Arranjo produtivo local da castanha-do-Brasil (Bertholletia excelsa Bonpl.) na região da Calha Norte, Pará.

Abstract

This study had as objective to analyze the performance of the local productive arrangement (APL) of Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa Bonpl.) in the Calha Norte region, state of Pará, aiming to identify the set of factors that directly influence on its performance. The data were obtained by means of a structured questionnaire in standard RedeSist, applied to agents of the productive chain, as well as through the database of official national agencies. For the analysis of the results was proposed systemic approach using the ValueLinks methodology, with views to the knowledge of the structure and development, analysis of trade links and the systemic management of the productive chain; whose discussions were based on theories of local productive agglomeration, systemic organizational processes, governance and performance competitiveness in industrial APLs in the Amazon. The main results show that the production in Pará remains below 10.000t per crop since the year 1990 with the municipalities of Oriximiná and Óbidos are the largest producers of Brazil nut. The majority part of the production exported from the north region is nuts in shell and from Pará it is nuts without shell. There was an increase in domestic consumption over the last 05 years (2009 to 2013). The extractive base chain comes due to lack of attention on the need for improvements in production and marketing remaining as the link where the smallest appropriation of value occurs. The agroindustry producers of Brazil nut are the main actors in the productive chain. The APL consists of small and medium-sized enterprises whose labor has low levels of schooling and vocational qualification. The locational advantages have been fundamental due to the proximity of raw materials and low-cost labor. The great competition among companies for processing business transactions carried out locally promote internalization of knowledge and learning individually, not unfolding a generation of information to APL as a whole. Political concessions will not ensure improvements in management, technological innovation and entrepreneurial actions for the best performance. It was concluded that, the vision of the productive chain and the implementation of public policies since the extractive collection until the processing of Brazil nut, are factors that are essential and highlighted to the competitiveness of the sector. There are low capacity of management and governance in the cooperative actions in a systematic form, showing only actions restricted to business environment individually, not showing integration between organizations in search for competitive advantages in APL. In general there is deficiency in the vision productive chain between the links, the performance of the APL and the possibility of local development with specialization in activities, however, there are local perspectives to strengthen the productive chain; for both there is a need to develop actions that might encourage greater efficiency and competitiveness of this chain, advancing in social and environmental, economic and institutional dimensions aiming at a better performance and, consequently to a greater strengthening of the productive chain of the Brazil nut in the Calha Norte region, state of Pará.