The Northern region of Brazil comprises the states of Acre, Rondônia, Amazonas, Roraima, Amapá, and Tocantins. The centre west region includes the states of Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, and Goiás, as well as the Federal District, capital of the Brazilian Government. The Northeast region encompasses the states of Maranhão, Piauí, Ceará, Paraíba, Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco, Alagoas, Sergipe, and Bahia. The Southeast region is formed by the states of Minas Gerais, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Espírito Santo. The Southern region includes the states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul (Figure 1).
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FIGURE 1
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Source: GuiaNet, 2003a.
Brazil covers an area of 8 547 000 km2 or 854.7 million ha, of which 64 percent (550 million ha) is considered to be potential farmland. The country’s continental dimensions lead to many types of climate and soils and consequently to a large diversity of crops and land use (Table 1). A modern, technically advanced agriculture dedicated to the production of export products coexists with a low-technology production of basic food crops for domestic consumption. This is especially the case with subsistence farming, which is most common in the poorer areas of the semi-arid northeast region, although it occurs to a smaller extent in other regions.
TABLE 1
Land utilization in Brazil
|
Types of land use or vegetal cover |
Million ha |
Percentage |
|
1. Land with an economic utilization |
|
|
|
Temporary crops |
38.5 |
4.5 |
|
Temporary crop land under fallow |
4.0 |
0.5 |
|
Permanent crops |
7.5 |
0.9 |
|
Improved pastures |
99.7 |
11.7 |
|
Natural pastures |
78.0 |
9.2 |
|
Planted forests |
5.4 |
0.6 |
|
Irrigated land |
3.0 |
0.4 |
|
Subtotal |
236.1 |
27.8 |
|
2. Natural cover |
|
|
|
Humid forests |
367.7 |
43.1 |
|
Dry forests |
54.4 |
6.4 |
|
Flooded forests |
14.2 |
1.7 |
|
Transitional forests |
28.2 |
3.3 |
|
“Cerrados” (savannahs) and grassland types |
73.2 |
8.6 |
|
Subtotal |
537.7 |
63.1 |
|
3. Lands with other uses |
|
|
|
Rocks and bare soils or with dispersed vegetation |
3.5 |
0.4 |
|
Rivers, natural and artificial lakes |
11.4 |
1.4 |
|
Urban |
2.1 |
0.2 |
|
Other uses or undefined |
60.7 |
7.1 |
|
Subtotal |
77.7 |
9.1 |
|
Total |
851.5 |
100.0 |
Source: Adapted from Manzatto et al., 2002 and Embrapa, 2003.
The rural population amounted, in 2000, to 31.8 million inhabitants or 18.7 percent of the country’s population. Owner-occupancy of farms predominates, accounting for 74.2 percent of the total number; tenants account for 5.5 percent, partners for 5.7 percent and occupiers for 14.6 percent. About 21 percent of the total labour force is engaged in agriculture and each farmer produces enough food for ten non-farming persons.
