The cycle of activities of the Ativa Barcarena program in 2021 had the participation of 118 farmers from 21 rural communities and islands in the municipality of Barcarena, Pará. All this, to contribute to the strengthening of family farming; organize the network of productive actors and promote products with a local identity. Only in this one, there were 17 workshops and four cycles of technical assistance, with follow-up visits to farmers and sharing of agricultural techniques.

As part of the technical assistance activities, meetings were also held with the communities to sign agreements for the installation of Bioinputs Preparation Demonstration Units (UD, in Portuguese) and workshops to provide guidance on the application of agroecological tools. The Bioinputs Preparation Demonstration Units are places that gather the necessary structure for the production of inputs such as biofertilizers, glass water, Bordeaux mixture and other agro-ecological tools against pests and diseases in the plantations. The materials needed for the first production cycle were provided by the program and the units will be jointly managed by the communities. This year, two units have already been installed in the Ramal da Embrasa community, and next year, more units will be installed in other communities.

Putting learning into practice

The workshops were dedicated to putting the tools into practice and answering questions about how to use them in the daily lives of families. The Ativa Barcarena team demonstrated in a practical way how producers can promote their production systems. Schedules, ways of dilution, application and care during use were some of the themes presented to the participants in the demonstration workshops. The technicians answered the producers' doubts, reinforcing the most suitable alternatives for each family production reality. During the workshops, the application of bio-inputs and the construction of composters were monitored, supporting the practice and reinforcing confidence in implementing the solutions learned. For Maria José Meirelles, from the Guajará da Serraria community, “from the workshops I am learning to manufacture my fertilizer in an agroecological and cheap way”. As for Francisco Costa, from the Cafezal community, the reuse of solid waste through composting brought important lessons. “Before, we didn't know that a leaf on a tree was fertilizing. Before, we used to burn everything”, reported the farmer.

Continuing the project's support activities, the groups will meet autonomously to organize collective agreements for the management of community bioinput production units. As part of the agreements, there is the definition of a schedule of activities and the responsibilities of each participant in their communities. In addition, the groups of farmers will organize the collection of materials necessary for the production of new batches of agroecological bio-inputs and for the installation of new production units that will have technical guidance from the program's team.

Balance Sheet - In September 2020, 91 family farmers were selected, representing 32 communities, a first group of family farmers to participate in the technical assistance cycle, which should be extended until April 2022. In 2021, the activities were divided into technical assistance cycles, when family farms receive technical visits from agronomists and participants are invited to exchange knowledge and learn agricultural methods in collective workshops. In all, 91 Production Unit Development Plans were developed based on the challenges faced by beneficiary families, 203 technical visits were carried out to family production units and 17 workshops were carried out on the manufacture, dilution and application of agroecological bio-inputs. For 2022, the technical assistance cycles planned for beneficiaries will continue, totaling six cycles planned.

Activates Barcarena in numbers:

17 workshops

118 participating family farmers residing in 21 communities in Barcarena.

203 technical visits to family production units

91 development plans for production units carried out