O agribusiness it is an area of the economy that mainly involves agricultural production. It is also called agribusiness and constitutes all social processes and activities that are related to the agriculture and also with the livestock. Therefore, contrary to what one might imagine, agribusiness does not only cover activities in the field, but also agribusiness, the manufacture of agricultural machinery and equipment and many others.
THEimportance of agribusiness it is indisputable in Brazil and in the world. In terms of economy, it is responsible for 42% of everything that our country exports, in addition to accounting for 37% of the jobs generated. It is also worth highlighting the role of Brazilian agribusiness in generating wealth, as it is responsible for more than 30% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Brazil.
We can say that agribusiness encompasses the three sectors of the economy: the primary, through rural production; O secondary, through agribusiness and agricultural input industries; it's the tertiary, through transportation and also the commercialization of agricultural goods, such as soy, coffee, sugarcane and many others.
This integration between the different sectors of activities meant that agribusiness was associated with the process of agricultural modernization, including the call “green revolution”. This modernization involves the increasing use of large machinery, chemical compounds (fertilizers, herbicides and others) and scientific knowledge, such as biotechnology and genetics responsible for foods transgenic.
Agribusiness-related production is increasingly mechanized
In Brazil, the agribusiness activity is responsible for the high volume of exports of some products, such as coffee, sugar cane and, mainly, the Soy. On the other hand, the concern with exports makes many people criticize agribusiness and its limitations in the area of food production, such as rice and beans.
Other criticisms directed at agribusiness are the fact that it has expanded the Brazil's agricultural frontier and, consequently, the advance of human practices on the natural environment of forests. This process was responsible for the devastation of many natural areas in the country, especially the Cerrado, and also many cases of land conflicts in the Northern region.
Controversies aside, agribusiness undoubtedly occupies a prominent position both in the national economy and in the field of politics. Therefore, the understanding of all its characteristics is highly necessary for the knowledge of the composition and structure of the territory and geographic space of Brazil.
By Me. Rofolfo Alves Pena
