Brasília – Brazil nut production by the native communities Paiter Suruí, Cinta Larga and Sakyrabiat in the region of Cacoal, Rondônia may reach 300 tonnes in 2019, a record-high in the latest years. The spike is a result of the exploration of new Brazil nut groves, as well as the use of machines that facilitate the pickup.
For Elisângela Suruí, coordinator at the indigenous co-op Coopaiter, the community’s goal is gradually reducing brokers and offering a product for more competitive prices and a higher value-added. “With our own production, we’ll add value, a better value, as well as appreciate the trouble that the producer goes through in looking for this nut in the forest, all their work, which is rarely worth these brokers,” said Elisângela.
Fundação Nacional do Índio (FUNAI) in Cacoal has helped the native peoples in picking up with machines, the unit’s coordinator Ricardo Prado said. Later this year, besides supplying nuts for companies in cities in Rondônia and participating in the public sector’s foodstuff purchase programs, the native peoples intend to start selling them to the states of Pará and Minas Gerais.
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
