Conserving the Amazon and the Cerrado goes far beyond preserving native vegetation. These spaces are home to people who have depended on natural resources for their livelihoods and those of others for decades or even centuries.
IPAM has understood that conserving the environment also means building sustainable alternatives with those who live in these territories that reinforce nature’s capacity to generate economic value, rather than representing a threat.
Here are two stories of family farmers who, in partnership with IPAM, have transformed their relationship with agricultural production.
The fire is gone – and so is uncertainty
“There will come a time when we won’t even be able to burn the garbage in the yard anymore,” said one of the neighbors to family farmer Felisbela Costa, in a settlement in the municipality of Pacajá, in the Brazilian north state of Pará. Using fire to clear pasture is common in the region, a tool passed down through generations of farmers.
When IPAM researchers informed the community in 2014 that abandoning the traditional technique was mandatory to join the PAS (Sustainable Settlements Project in the Amazon, in Portuguese), residents’ mistrust gave way to resistance to adopting the measure.
Changes of scenery do, however, demand changes of attitude. In past decades, burning small areas of swidden in the Amazon might not have caused large-scale damage. The forest, still moist and less impacted by climate change, was able to absorb the heat and contain the fire.
With the vegetation becoming drier, any embers that escape into forest areas can now turn into a fire due to the low humidity, wind, deforestation, and the consequences of degradation, which makes it easier for the flames to spread.
Felisbela and other family farmers accepted the challenge of increasing production without deforesting or using fire. She had already stopped burning to clear the area and wanted support to recover the APPs (Permanent Preservation Areas) that had been deforested on her plot for a long time. The mapping, followed by the delivery of inputs for restoration, started a relationship of dedication and esteem between the farmer and IPAM, which continues to this day.
Two years later, during the Sustainable Family Business Project (2016), IPAM supported her and other producers’ idea of building an open market to sell their produce. While the institute helped purchase tents, tables, and equipment, Felisbela was in charge of mapping out among her colleagues the products that would be offered to the city of Pacajá.
The long-standing partnership between Felisbela and IPAM was followed by results to strengthen family farming in the region: the founding and certification of the Pacajá Rural Family Producers Cooperative, in which Felisbela was president for two terms; the acquisition of equipment for agricultural production in the cooperative, which involved computers, a stove, a refrigerator and a pickup truck; the distribution in the municipality of a fruit pulp agroindustry and a flour house; educational programs, involving ATER (Technical Assistance and Rural Extension) and courses in business and food handling, among other actions.
On the plot where she lives, Felisbela and her two children take advantage of the fully productive area by implementing an agroforestry system in the place where deforestation used to take place. She guarantees that this new area of forest strengthens the diversity of her production: today, she can harvest at least 13 types of fruit to make pulp, for example.
The new agricultural format has contributed not only to the environment but also to farmers’ pockets, according to the rural producer. “There used to be farmers who asked the town hall for a basic food basket. Today, they are producing and supporting themselves. Before, I didn’t even have a motorcycle. Now, I have a motorcycle and a car, just with the money from the open market we built together,” she recalls.
The farmer says that she will take IPAM’s name wherever she can, because it has only brought benefits to the municipality. “IPAM has worked for Pacajá and the region as a whole. It embraced us like a family and only brought us good things. We now see people who are more environmentally aware, seeing that they no longer need to burn or deforest to produce. The beneficiaries are multiplying this new way of doing things,” says Felisbela, who considers the researchers to be her friends and welcomes them into her home any day.
PAS has contributed to a 135% increase in the gross income of 2,000 families, like Felisbela’s. Find out more about IPAM’s work in sustainable production.
A sweet hope like fruit pulp
Family farmer Genivaldo Fernandes starts his routine at 6 am on a plot of land in the rural area of Novo Repartimento, in the state of Pará. His main job is to wait for the Earth to guide him and plot his next steps.
One day is spent repairing the fence, the next preparing the seedlings for cultivation. The needs and whims of the land are promptly attended to by Genivaldo, who takes care of the soil where he has been growing fruit such as acerola, guava, soursop, pineapple, and passion fruit for over 50 years.
Being devoted to the land, however, is a gamble in life. Many of his neighbors have already left to face longer droughts and a lack of economic supply for their crops. Others have dedicated themselves to converting pastures and selling cattle. However, Genivaldo uses the faith he has in the sale of his fruit pulp to guarantee his income. “Many people have left the land for lack of options. I don’t have any other option outside of here, so I’m staying,” says the producer.
His faith is also anchored in the seal of artisanal vegetable production through efforts with the support of IPAM and partners in 2023, attesting to his enterprise’s good handling and manufacturing practices.
The farmer went on to compete for tenders and ensure that municipalities and governments bought his production for school lunch programs, such as the PNAE (National School Feeding Program), for example.
Project beneficiaries receiving fruit pulp agroindustry in Pará. Photo: Maria Garcia/IPAM
Genivaldo’s partnership with IPAM also resulted in a fruit pulp agroindustry equipped with a freezer and an industrial pulper. He started producing more and, with the seal, no longer depended on other people to absorb his produce. In addition to him, the structure benefits four other families in the region.
If the sweetness of the fruit is concentrated in each pulp packaged by the agro-industry used by Genivaldo, the investment in sustainable agriculture also comes across on the palate.
“When it comes to planting, the economic power is small, and it takes a while to see results. But with projects like this, we are encouraged and see that it is possible to survive in rural areas. With the agro-industry, we’re also starting to see more income,” he says.
At least 19 agro-industries like Genivaldo’s have been delivered to 12 municipalities in Pará. In each location, IPAM supported the drawing up of municipal plans for sustainable rural development, together with the communities.
Cover photo: Thiago Forest/IPAM