Residência agronômica com enfoque agroecológico: o caso dos canais de venda direta na Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

The Residency is a Program of the Instituto de Agronomia (Institute of Agronomy) that allows agronomist engineers graduated less than three years to improve their knowledge, skills, and attitudes pertaining their professional activities by means of training under the supervision of a professor at UFRRJ. The extension project called “Fortification of the Family Farming at Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro: markets creation and technical assistance for local sustainable development” (free translation from the Portuguese “Fortalecimento da Agricultura Familiar na Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro: construção de mercados e assistência técnica para o desenvolvimento local sustentável”) was held to stimulate marketing alternative strategies at UFRRJ, and to promote training, technical assistance, and rural extension for family farming fortification in the region known as Baixada Fluminense, by generating income and enhancement of the production with the support of resident agronomist engineers. This research encompassed a description of the experience of creation of the Family Farming Fair (FAF-Rural as the acronym for Feira da Agricultura Familiar), and of the First Public Call for the Food Acquisition Program at UFRRJ, from the perspective of the author as a Resident in Agronomy for a 24-month period. The FAF-Rural, was initially held on the first two Wednesdays of the month. Thanks to the recognition from the academic and the Seropedica’s communities, as well as to the quality, variety, presentation and accessible prices of its produce, the FAF-Rural came to be weekly held. The methodology applied for the creation of the FAF-Rural was the descriptive research and the collection of socioeconomic features, as well as the assessment of the satisfaction degree of the merchants and customers, through interviews, according to semi-structured protocols. A documental and bibliographic research was conducted for the elaboration and execution of the PAA-UFRRJ First Call. After 41 editions, with gross revenue of 196 thousand reais, up to October 2017, the FAF-Rural benefited approximately 30 merchants, most of whom are from the Seropédica County, consolidating itself as a space for integration between farmers and the academic community, contributing to increase the offer of locally produced organic food. The PAA, in its Institutional Purchase modality, was a pioneer in the Rio de Janeiro State, allowing the purchasing of foodstuff directly from family farmers. A total of 354 cartons of climate-controlled lady’s finger bananas, 127 boxes of cassava, and 134 kg of pumpkin were acquired, totaling 9,434 kg of produce, which equals to a gross revenue of 25 thousand reais, benefiting directly three farmers. The demand of the First Public Call for foodstuff purchase from family farming, which was forwarded to the Restaurante Universitário (the university restaurant), which was supplied for up to 25%, had a meaningful impact on the suppliers, fostering the family farming in the Seropédica’s territory, generating income, and increasing the supply of organic food to the academic community.