Abstract:
Increasing demand for food relies on sustainable agriculture practices to feed the worldwide
population. Brazil, as a key producer of agricultural commodities, plays an important role in
overcoming environmental challenges and promoting sustainability. In this context, integrated
agricultural production systems (IAPS) rise as an alternative to increase agricultural efficiency
due to its potential benefits such as soil fertility, higher productivity, lower use of agrochemicals,
interruption of pest and disease cycles as well as income diversification. The main goal stands
for strategically changing land use by integrating sustainable production of agricultural, livestock
and forestry activities in the same area, through intercropping, succession or rotation, by seeking
the synergistic effects between each production system component. Despite current efforts from
the Brazilian Government to boost IAPS adoption, those systems have not yet been adopted in a
large scale. Therefore, this study aims to identify potential synergy effects, which are more likely
to be explored by Brazilian farmers. Subsequently, this paper provides insights for farmers
decision making and comprehension about the interaction of IAPS components. |
