The governor of Mato Grosso, Brazil's dominant agricultural state, wants to learn from Nebraska irrigation strategies and policies to expand irrigated agriculture in parts of Brazil.
Gov. Mauro Mendes Ferreira spoke Monday at the Water for Food conference hosted by the University of Nebraska. Officials in Nebraska had hosted Mendes and other Brazilian officials last year to begin opening a dialogue on irrigation development in Brazil.
Mendes also spoke to DTN about infrastructure, irrigation and Chinese investments in Brazilian agriculture.
Mendes also met Monday morning with Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, and the two talked about similarities between the two states and some areas where they could work together. Talking about the two states, Mendes said, "Nebraska and Mato Gross have many things in common. Both are in the center of their countries and both are important food-producing states."
Mendes's speech and interview were interpreted by Christopher Neale, director of research for the Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute at the university, which has spearheaded conferences centered around irrigation development.
Mato Grosso is responsible for $21.6 billion in agricultural exports and produces more soybeans on its own than Argentina, the world's third-largest producer. Still, Mendes pointed out that the state has 29.6 million acres of production (12 million hectares) but only has 422,000 irrigated acres, less than 1.5% total.
Irrigation has the potential to allow some farmers to grow not only two crops but three crops in a single year, Mendes told DTN.
"With irrigation, they'll guarantee the production; they'll be able to start planting soybeans earlier," Mendes said through Neale. "That means they can fit (in) a full corn crop instead of a short-season corn. Plus, they'll grow dry beans in the third season. So, that's if they can do it sustainably. That's the goal."
Mendes also highlighted that 62% of Mato Grosso is still in preserved areas of the three main ecosystems: the Amazon, the Cerrado or savannas, and Pantanal wetlands. In his speech, Mendes cited that the entirety of preserved land in Mato Grosso is larger than the country of France. Speaking to DTN, both Mendes and Neal noted the country faces global pressure to preserve ground from expanded agricultural production.
"The reason we are helping them (Mato Gross) as an institute together with other partners in Brazil, is they understand that if we introduce irrigation sustainably in the existing areas of agriculture, that would take (away) the pressure to cut down more forests, or cut down more savannah, and increase the productivity on existing lands," Neale said. "So, that's the rationale if they can do it sustainably, and that's why we're going to help them analyze the groundwater and the surface waters model and see what's available."
IRRIGATION INTENSIFICATION
Pointing specifically to the Amazon biome and its importance in sucking carbon out of the atmosphere, Mendes said, "There is a need and a will to maintain sustainability."
Yet, despite its productivity as a state, Mendes also said production per hectare is still lower than in the U.S. Agriculture as a whole in Brazil is now linking the need to protect the Amazon with the need to increase productivity through irrigation.
Source: dtnpf.com
Photo Credit: istock-laughingmango
Categories: Nebraska, Crops