Performance Analysis of Dairy Farms Transitioning to Environmentally Friendly Grazing Practices: The Case Study of Santa Catarina, Brazil

Andréa Castelo Branco Brasileiro-Assing, Jini Kades, Paulo Antônio de Almeida Sinisgalli, Joshua Farley and Abdon Schmitt-Filho
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Andréa Castelo Branco Brasileiro-Assing: Graduate Environmental Science Program (PROCAM), University of São Paulo (USP), Estrada Geral Rio dos Índios, 01, Santa Rosa de Lima 88763-000, Brazil
Jini Kades: Department of Community Development & Applied Economics, University of Vermont, 510 N St. SW, Washington, DC 20024, USA
Paulo Antônio de Almeida Sinisgalli: Graduate Environmental Science Program (PROCAM), University of São Paulo (USP), Estrada Geral Rio dos Índios, 01, Santa Rosa de Lima 88763-000, Brazil
Joshua Farley: Community Development and Applied Economics, University of Vermont, 205 B Morrill Hall, Burlington, VT 05405, USA
Abdon Schmitt-Filho: Silvopastoril Systems and Ecological Restoration Lab (LASSre), Agroecosystem Program at University of Santa Catarina (PGA/UFSC), Rodovia Admar Gonzaga, 1346, Cx. P 476, Floriaoópolis 88034-000, Brazil

Land, 2022, vol. 11, issue 2, 1-18

Abstract: The conflict between food production and environmental conservation demands alternative agriculture practices to maintain or increase food production, protect and restore critical ecosystem processes, and reduce dependence on non-renewable agricultural inputs. Deforestation in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest, for which agriculture has been a primary driver, already threatens the biome’s impressive biodiversity and the ecosystem services it helps sustain. Many small family farmers in Santa Catarina—located in the South of Brazil—have adopted the Voisin Rational Grazing System (VRG) as an alternative to conventional and environmentally detrimental dairy activities. This article presents the results of a research project designed to analyze the economic, social, and ecological VRG impacts based on farmers’ perceptions and economic accounts. We compare farmer profitability and critical social and environmental aspects of both systems using detailed interviews and monthly accounting of revenues and expenditures on VRG and conventional farms. We found that VRG is more profitable than the conventional dairy system in Santa Rosa de Lima. However, most farmers combine VRG with some conventional practices, affecting profitability and potential ecological benefits. The adoption of VRG in Santa Rosa de Lima nonetheless correlates with reduced use of environmentally harmful inputs, compatible with a gradual transition to a more ecologically-friendly and sustainable system.

Keywords: profitability; management intensive grazing; sustainability; dairy production; environmental conservation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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