Family farmers are being valued and receiving fair payments for the agroecological products they grow and for practices that contribute to a greater good: the preservation of our planet. This is the desire of many rural producers. For some in the Sana district, in the mountainous region of Macaé (RJ), located in an Environmental Preservation Area (APA), this is something that has just become a reality.

At the end of January, an ordinance published in the Official Gazette of the State of Rio de Janeiro formalized the recognition of agroecological farmers and those in transition to this sustainable model. The measure, unprecedented in the state, allows rural workers recognized with this status to obtain an increase of up to 30% in the sale of their products, and makes Rio de Janeiro the second state in the country to adopt this initiative — until then restricted to São Paulo.

This achievement is largely due to the support of the Norberto Odebrecht Foundation (FNO) and the Environmental and Cultural Heritage Protection Association (APPAC Tororó) for the implementation of the IATA protocol (Agroecological Transition Assessment Instrument) by EMATER-Rio, provided for in a technical cooperation agreement.

The IATA methodology, applied to family farmers in the Sana region — most of whom are FNO beneficiaries — consisted of a series of tests that assessed their agroecosystems and identified the level of agroecological transition at which each production unit was located.

Beneficiaries of the Sana PDCIS recognized as agroecological farmers will see an increase of up to 30% in the sale of their products

“This recognition is a big step. There is also a peculiarity: the only rural producers who have been certified for their agroecological production, in the entire state of Rio de Janeiro, are those from our region. This directly reflects our organization and efforts with the PDCIS Sana”, says Marcio Nascimento, executive director of APPAC.

The project that Marcio refers to is, in fact, the first experience of the Norberto Odebrecht Foundation in expanding its social program, the PDCIS (Integrated Development and Growth Program with Sustainability), beyond the Bahia axis, where it has been operating since 2003. The reapplication in Sana, which began in 2021, was carried out in partnership, in addition to APPAC, with the Association of Family Farm Producers of Sana (APAF) and the City of Macaé.

PDCIS Sana and sustainable territorial development

Aimed at strengthening family farming, the initiative came across a scenario in which chemical products that were harmful to the environment were being used by rural producers in Sana. Aiming to reverse this reality, in addition to providing agroecological inputs and organic fertilizers, training and technical assistance were provided so that sustainable practices could be incorporated into the daily lives of the beneficiaries – 26 farmers from seven communities in the region.

“We began agroecological transition actions with them, considering that they are in an environmental preservation area. We developed a management system that guarantees maximum preservation of the natural and water resources of the Sana basin”, says Jonas Nogueira, Sustainability Coordinator at FNO.

The results of the project, completed at the end of 2024, were significant: crop diversification, increased productivity and an increase of R$3,384.78 in the average income of the family farmers served. This amount, after recognition for agroecological production, tends to grow significantly.

“We are issuing the first certificates that guarantee these producers access to public policies, such as rural credit and agricultural development, and some private policies, to attract investment,” says João Batista Alves Pereira, State Technical Manager of Planning and Methodology at Emater-Rio. Regarding the joint efforts with the institutions of the PDCIS Sana to implement the IATA protocol, he also states: “It is a partnership that has borne fruit. We want to continue this joint work, developing actions for farmers in the Sana micro-basin.”