Milk production has grown in many regions of the country, in Paraná specially at the Western and Southwestern regions. These results are due to the growth of activity on family agriculture and technical assistance present on these properties.

The EMATER Institute, as the official organ of technical assistance and rural extension, also had and has great participation in this growth. Technical assistance focusing on the outcome, forming reference units, has been fundamental in the dissemination of technologies and management indexes to many producers. On the property Grassi&Vanazi in Nova Prata do Iguaçu, one of the properties with the assistance of the present project, the development indexes associated to the effort of the producer and to technical assistance with continuity, prove that the activity is profitable and provides quality of life to rural families.

The focus of this project is based on increased productivity, quality milk production, herd health and increased family income. Demonstrating that when associating the work of the producer with focused technical assistance it is fully possible to live well in the family property.

A - General Information

START: January 2011 (in progress)

EXECUTING ENTITY: EMATER Institute

PARTNERS: City Hall of Nova Prata do Iguaçu, Municipal Agriculture and Environment Department of Nova Prata do Iguaçu and Banco do Brasil S. A. (BBSA) – Branch: Nova Prata do Iguaçu

PRESENTED BY: Rafael Flavio Dias Cavallieri

RESOURCES: Own and third parties

VALUE RANGE: Between US$ 5.000 e US$10.000

CATEGORY: Reference unit

ÁREA TEMÁTICA PRINCIPAL: Agriculture

KEYWORDS: Milk Livestock, Family Agriculture, Small Property, Rural Development, Settlement of Rural Population, Increased Productivity, Financial Increase, ATER

TARGET: Family farmers

LOCALIZATION: Rural area

GEOGRAPHICAL COVERAGE: Municipality

SPECIFIC AREA OF DEPLOYMENT: Municipality of  Nova Prata do Iguaçu, estado do Paraná

B - Description of practice

1 -BACKGROUND

Milk production has increased in Brazil, and some regions have excelled in this production increment, the southern region of the country, for example, has increased its production of 5.7 to 11.7 billion liters in the last ten years. Paraná also increased its milk production in the same period, in 2003 it produced 2.1 billion liters, and produced 4.3 billion liters in 2013 (Volpi, 2015).

The west and southwest areas of Paraná grew in a much larger proportion than the national and state average, and highlight to the Southwest that in 2014, was the region of the State that produced more milk. The southwest of Paraná is characterized by small farming with properties with average area of 10 ha, and normally, with rugged relief. Due to land distribution and relief, agricultural activities are quite diverse and in recent years, producers have sought in milk their main source of income. 

The weather and the soil in the southwest region of Paraná are favorable to the production of high-value tropical nutritious fodder, in spring and summer, and temperate annual fodder in the fall and winter. It also has great ability to produce corn, which is used in the production of silage, intended for animal nutrition.

Noting this growth and the opportunity to improve the family income, the EMATER Institute trained its professionals to better meet the growing demand for technical assistance in the dairy activity which developed, and is still in development. The strategy that was sought in this work was to create 07 reference units, for further dissemination of the results to farmers. Of these, 02 have presented highly satisfactory results, the first of which was initiated in January 2011, and the second in May 2013. In February 2014, the other 05 began to be assisted, all relying on partnerships of municipalities, universities, research institutes, financial agents, local and regional industries, cooperatives, private companies among others.

2 - GENERAL OBJECTIVE

Increase productivity and income through the production of milk with quality, through healthy animals and preserving the environment.

Specific Objectives:

• Increase income generation for small properties;
• Increase milk productivity;
• Improve the nutritional quality of milk;
• Reduce production costs;
• Meet the environmental legislation; and
• Settle the small producer in the rural area.

3 - SOLUTION ADOPTED

The proposal has been deployed on a property of 35 ha, being 7.5 ha available to dairy farming. Of these, 3,3 ha were planted with tropical grassland, Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum), and irrigated with sprinkler system. The remaining 7.5 ha were intended for the production of silage and annual temperate grazing, oats (Avenastringosa) and Italian ryegrass (Loliummultiflorium) in crop-livestock integration system according to Assman, et al. (2008).

For zootechnical and quality control of the milk, the tool used was the official dairy control, provided by the Association of cattle breeders of the Dutch race, with measures of production and reproductive data monthly update. Based on dairy control, diets balancing worksheet with precision was used, provided by IAPAR. The diet is balanced on a monthly basis, according to the food available on the property. For the comfort of the animals, it was deployed in December 2012, the silvipastoril system in Napier grass area, associated with the planting of seedlings of eucalyptus trees.

In the financial area, the management of dairy farming spreadsheet of the EMATER Institute was used. Fed monthly with the results, generating cash flow and economic balance data. In it fixed and variable expenses were adopted, as well as the capital available to the producer. 

The manpower allocated for the purpose was at the beginning, a couple with two children. The two children, kids for the time of implementation of the project, helped in some simple tasks like the suckling of calves. Currently, the younger son, 14 years, is involved with the feeding and handling of calves, assisting where necessary in the activities of the property.

At the end of each year it was conducted an analysis of the results obtained. Due to the good results of this work, and the partnership formed between the EMATER Institute and UNICAFES (Union of small farming Cooperatives and Sympathetic Interaction), the work in 2013, was proposed to two more families linked to the milk cooperative family farming of Nova Prata do Iguaçu. One of them, readily accepted the offer, and the assisted area in the property is 08 ha, being 2.5 ha of tropical perennial pastures (Brachiariabrizantha) and 1.0 ha annual summer pasture, 2.0 ha are made available to plant oats and Italian ryegrass, which feed the cows during the winter. It is worth mentioning that the perennial pasture, was degraded at the beginning of the work, and the producer didn't work aspects of conservation and soil correction, nor the regular fertilization of this area. The focus was the production of annual grasses with emphasis on the cultivation of sorghum and oats in winter. The other practices adopted on the first property, such as milk control, diet balance and financial management were deployed in this second case.

The other properties in the process of implementing the project add up to a total of 80 ha, being 25 ha available exclusively to dairy farming. In them, the dairy control was implemented in the second half of 2015, as well as diet balance, forage management and financial management, all still in the consolidation process.

4 - RESULTS ACHIEVED

The increase of the results of the project, from the first to the second year, in the first property was small, because proper direct investments in property were not carried out. However, with the evolution of the herd, it was possible to observe a slight improvement of productivity. For the third year, 2013, the investment was high, the producer built a new milking room and covered area to feed the animals, improving the milking equipment, with piped system and cooling of milk.

Another important development was related to the herd, because part of the heifers born in 2011 passed to productive maturity, in this case, the average of lactating animals increased from 18 at the beginning of the project to 30 cows. Regarding property investments, the producer invested in improving the infrastructure with the implementation of irrigation in pastures, construction of pit,channeled milking machine, milking room, and acquisition of a silage cutter, amount corresponding to R$ 30,000.00 in investments through the PRONAF and other investments with resources from the activity.

With that, for the period 2011 to 2013 there were the following developments:

a- Increased production from 95,703 liters to 133,152 liters per year;

b- Increased productivity from 14,326 to 17,753 L/ha in two years;

c- Physical capital growth from R$ 145,000.00 to R$ 252,000.00;

d- Annual net income growth from R$ 43,444.20 to R$ 70,847.77;

In 2014, this producer went on to produce 148,650 liters of milk as early as 2015, the production was of 178,360 liters. With the breeding work carried out between the years 2013 and 2014, for 2016, a production over 220,000 liters is expected.

The results obtained in the second property were also quite expressive, without major investments, at the beginning of the work the producer had 10 cows in lactation and 02 dry. Had also, 04 more heifers with over 1 year of age and monthly production was of 3,000 liters. At the end of 2013, with the deployment of dairy control, zoo technicalmanagement and financial management and feeding management of the herd, the producer was already producing 6,500 liters per month, without increasing the herd.

In 2015, with the evolution of the herd and the assisted management of all animals, from the calves to cows in lactation, the producer with an annual average of 13 cows in lactation, produced 99,645 liters of milk per year and annual net income of R$ 51,815.40 with the activity. 

5 - RESOURCES NEEDED

For practical deployment, participated in the work:

Human Resources:

•01 zoo technician that held the drafting of proposals of the Pronaf and implemented the dairy process control, monitoring property management process;

•01 agricultural technician that performed artificial inseminations.

Infrastructure:

•Existing installations initially relied on a stable of wood, with bucket milking, with two sets;

•03hectare of perennial pasture in deployment;

•01 hectare of sugarcane; and

•7,5 hectares for winter pasture, being 3.5 hectares of the area intended for the production of silage.

Machinery:

•The producer had to perform the practices 01 tractor 75 cv;

•01 flail mower;

•01 spreader;

•01 planter;

•01 milking machine; and

•01notebook to operate spreadsheet for managing and balancing diets.

Supplies:

•The main inputs used by the producer were the chemical fertilizers, grass seedlings, seeds for the production of winter pasture (black oats) and corn silage.

6 - TRANSFERÊNCIA

The practice was spread to other producers of the municipality and region, and some have adopted the management program, management and control similar to those adopted in the reference units. With that, some dairy properties in the region, already obtained significant results in relation to the increase in their productivity and household income.

The main form of replication has been through field days promotion, technical meetings, presentation of the results of the reference units to producers who are being visited by the technical staff responsible. During the year of 2015, several producers have sought the EMATER Institute and the Department of agriculture in the municipality of Nova Prata do Iguaçu, seeking technical information based on the results obtained in the reference units.

7 - LESSONS LEARNED

The production of milk, when held with engaged management and technical assistance, is a highly profitable activity and generates income in a sustainable manner to the families of the rural area. The use of reference units as knowledge transfer methodology is efficient in view of the increased production in the assisted properties.

Also, with the arrangement of partnerships, extension, research, universities and the performance of public officials, there is a strong link to the development of the agricultural sector in the cities of Paraná. It is necessary however, to train more professionals with a focus on management consulting, in order to leverage the productivity associated with the quality of the milk.

8 - ORIGINALITY OF PRACTICE

This work was based on Reference Networks, program created by IAPAR (Paraná Agronomic Institute) in partnership with Institute of Technical Assistance and Rural Extension (EMATER).

There is the possibility of visits and the best time elapses between the months of November to February and June to August.

Timetables between 9 A.M. and 4 P.M., up to 40 visitors per visit.