Brazilian Association of Vegetabel Oil Industries - ABIOVE

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1 Brazilian Association of Vegetabel Oil Industries - ABIOVE Press Release Soja Plus looks to show the European market the advances in the economic, social and environmental management of Brazilian soybeans The fourth annual Soja Plus meeting was held in São Paulo, revealing the positive results in four states and proposals for expansion São Paulo, November 13, 2014 With the participation of 120 representatives from 45 institutions, including rural producers associations, soybean trading and processing companies, civil society, the academic and research sector, and agribusiness executives, the Soja Plus Program held its fourth annual meeting in São Paulo on November 4, 2014, revealing the expansion of its activities over the next years. Soja Plus started in 2011 in the state of Mato Grosso (Brazil s largest soybean producer), and is now also present in the states of Mato Grosso do Sul (fifth largest producer), Minas Gerais (sixth largest producer) and Bahia (seventh largest producer). We want to expand to other states over next three years. The Program is demanding and needs a lot of people, technicians, to provide the rural properties with the training and improvements they need to make to comply with the requirements of Brazilian legislation, said Carlo Lovatelli, the president of Abiove.

2 The total investment for the Soja Plus Program, since 2011, is about R$20 million. Ricardo Arioli, one of the Program s creators and currently president of the Environmental Commission at FAMATO (Mato Grosso Agricultural & Livestock Federation), as well as a consultant for APROSOJA/MT (Mato Grosso State Soybean & Corn Producers Association), highlighted that one of the objectives, in addition to bringing improvements to the farms, is to transform the Soja Plus Program into a passport that takes Brazilian soybeans to Europe. In the opinion of ABIOVE s president, it is the European market that is imposing restrictions. We want the Soja Plus Program to be the program of reference and quality, all that Europe wants, emphasized Lovatelli. In this sense, one of the Program s most important challenges is the publication abroad, especially in Europe, of its advances and results four years after its implementation. For this, see the Soja Plus 2014 Report of Accomplishments, in Portuguese and English, on ABIOVE s site: FEFAC (European Feed Manufacturer s Federation), the entity that represents the European animal feed industry, recently met in São Paulo with ABIOVE and APROSOJA/MT to learn the details of the socio-environmental indicators applied by the Soja Plus Program to the properties inscribed in the Program. The parties are talking about the possibility of making the Soja Plus indicators applicable to the criteria recognized by the European market. The next meeting of

3 FEFAC, ABIOVE and APROSOJA/MT to continue this discussion is set for February ABIOVE and APROSOJA/MT are the main organizers of the Soja Plus Program, that was created as an alternative to the imposing and removed from reality character of some certification programs, such as the Round Table on Responsible Soy (RTRS). Soja Plus is voluntary, it is not a certification program, and it offers free training to producers, through courses and field days/workshops, as well as individual technical visits to the farms by supervisors trained to transmit knowledge of Brazil s strict labor and environmental legislation. Soja Plus is Brazilian, adapted to our possibilities and limitations, added Lovatelli. In practice, the suggested actions range from simple steps, such as installation of signs and warnings on the properties as required by our labor legislation, through to compliance with the complex norms of the Forest Code. The next step after joining the Program is to open the way for some premium to be offered to the producer, said Arioli. Soja Plus has three stages: the first is mobilization of the producers through talks and general information about the Program; the second is holding the courses; and the third is the technical assistance provided on the farms through the application of a checklist with the socio-environmental indicators. The producers have to answer a detailed questionnaire on subjects raised in the courses and during the technical visits. Soja Plus s work methodology is anchored on five management modules applied to rural management: occupational health and safety, best production practices and

4 environmental compliance, financial and economic viability, product quality and social responsibility. Soja Plus Program in the States Ricardo Tomczyk, president of APROSOJA/Mato Grosso, pointed out that in his state 600 properties were given individual orientation by Soja Plus in In partnership with SENAR/MT (Mato Grosso National Service for Rural Learning), 1,100 producers were trained this year. Altogether, over 4,000 rural producers have been trained since He said that the demand came directly from the producers who are aware of the need to comply with the country s environmental and labor legislation. Soja Plus is important because it provides tools and instructions so that the rural producer can correctly comply with current legislation. There are no penalties, no costs. It provides practical conditions to comply with Brazil s norms. Mauricio Saito, president of APROSOJA/MS, the Mato Grosso do Sul state producers association, said that all the entity s members, about 500, are joining Soja Plus. He highlighted the importance of the property getting the Soja Plus participation plaque upon joining, as this is a motive of pride for the rural producer to be able to show that his/her production complies with sustainability standards. Ivanir Maia, Director of Institutional Relations for AIBA (Bahian Farmers & Irrigators Association), emphasized that the rural producer is not often given consultations on how to conform to the legislation. Soja Plus came to provide such orientation free of charge. Claudionor Nunes de Morais, president of the grain commission of FAEMG (Minas Gerais Agricultural & Livestock Federation), said that Soja Plus, introduced into Minas Gerais

5 state in August, has everything to be successful in his state and can count on a partnership with the renowned Federal University of Viçosa. He recalled that the properties in this state are older and the Minas Gerais producer is more conservative. However, when we see the existing legislation, we believe there is no other way. In Mato Grosso state, the partnership between ABIOVE and APROSOJA/Mato Grosso is with SENAR/MT, FAMATO and IAS (Cotton Social Institute). In the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, ABIOVE s partners are SENAR/MS, FAMASUL (Mato Grosso do Sul Agricultural & Livestock Federation) and APROSOJA/MS. In Bahia, ABIOVE s work is developed with AIBA and, in Minas Gerais state, the coordinators are the FAEMG system and the Federal University of Viçosa. Homage paid to Soja Plus Producers The producers, Eloisa Zuconelli, Gilberto Eberhardt and Antonio Carlos Siqueira Junior, were honored at the Soja Plus Seminar for their compliance with the Program s goals on their properties in Diamantino, Lucas do Rio Verde and Campo Verde, respectively. They received the 2014 Soja Plus Trophy Excellence in Rural Property Management. For Eloisa Zuconelli, the Soja Plus Program is an important tool for improvements on rural properties. It brought a sense of organization and care for all the criteria promoted by the Program. After Soja Plus, there is a visible difference, she said. She also said that there are several stages to which the producers must adapt, including increasing the awareness of the rural property s collaborators. We need our employees to act with us in this improvement. It is not always easy, but it is not impossible, she believes.

6 The labor question and the involvement of the farm s collaborators with the Program are important points, agrees producer Gilberto Eberhardt. Today, employees work well, within the norms. Our property has an exemplary evaluation because of the organization, he said. Before voluntarily joining the Program, Eberhardt had already tried to comply with labor and rural norms. These adaptations were not easy and required a financial investment that needs to be planned. In his opinion, the Soja Plus Program brings the technical assistance needed to make the improvements. Source: ABIOVE Communications Department Tel: /