The world seeks sustainability, that is, the use of natural resources in an appropriate way, so as not to harm the next generations. In agriculture, sustainability occurs when a given area remains productive “forever”, and aiming at steadily increasing yields on the same portion of land.
Although it is a great challenge to keep agroecosystems sustainable, it is possible, even though these are less diversified and fragile environments. And this has happened: 25 years ago an area that produced one ton per hectare (t / ha) of grains, currently produces about four t / ha. We can conclude that the increase in production is a consequence, mainly, of higher productivity and not expansion of cultivated area. For this, there is a need to incorporate all available knowledge and technology into the production processes developed by the research. Thus, there is no need to expand the area with agriculture, with less pressure on areas with native vegetation.
One of the technologies developed to increase the sustainability of agriculture is the Livestock-Livestock-Forest Integration (ILPF), which has been implanted by the producers and has been very successful and highlighted in the media, due to the excellent results it has been achieving in the field.
It is a strategy that reduces some negative aspects of monoculture. In the same area annual, semiperennial or perennial crops, animals and planted forests are produced together or in sequence. They are classified as crop-livestock (ILP), crop-forest (ILF), livestock-forest (IPF) and crop-livestock-forest (ILPF). They can be adopted in any region or climate, by small, medium and large producers.
ILPF is beneficial in economic aspects (higher net income, diverse products, reduction of risks, economic stability), environmental (soil nutrient cycling, greater biodiversity, soil conservation, greater efficiency in the use of natural resources, less pressure on native vegetation (reducing greenhouse gas / CO2 emissions) and social (reducing the seasonality of the use of labor and rural exodus, generating jobs, improving the image of rural producers and animal welfare). It is the practical application of sustainability.
The production of meatpremium is a trend in the market and to make products that meet this demand, it is necessary to adhere to some changes, including actions that guarantee its quality along with the preservation of the environment; and ILPF is able to reconcile these two requirements, since it has already been proven that there is recovery in degraded pastures and deforested areas, in addition to increased productivity of plant and animal production.
In Brazil, it is estimated that in the 2015/16 crop, the ILPF system occupied about 11 million ha, of about 200 million with agricultural activities (5.5% of area), mainly in the states of MS, MT, RS, MG and GO. Prevalence of ILP, with 80% of the area, followed by ILPF (9%), IPF (7%) and ILF (1%).
This production system has been increasing in the last 10 years (2005 to 2015). This technology is included in the ABC Program (Low Carbon Agriculture) and has an exclusive credit line. It increased from 1.9 million ha in 2005 to 11.5 million ha in 2015, an increase of more than 500%.
Among the ranchers practicing the ILPF, 20% of the arable area is expected to be exploited under this system by 2030. This is gaining strength through incentives from state governments, such as in Mato Grosso do Sul, with the Terra Boa program which, since 2016, has supported producers who want to invest in the system, recover their degraded pastures and reduce the environmental impacts generated by agriculture in the region. The goal of the program is to recover at least 25% of the state’s degraded pastures by 2021, increasing grain production, meat, sugarcane, among others, and reducing deforestation.
* José Otavio Menten, President of the Scientific Council for Sustainable Agriculture (CCAS), Agronomist, Master and PhD in Agronomy, Post-Doctorate in Pest Management and Biotechnology and Associate Professor at ESALQ / USP;
*Ticyana Banzato, an agronomist and doctoral student at ESALQ / USP.