Localização e custo de produção do leite de propriedades rurais da microrregião de Pelotas RS: uma proposta metodológica

Abstract

Brazil is one of the largest milk producers in the world, currently ranked fourth in the world. One of the states with the most tradition in dairy cattle is Rio Grande do Sul, responsible for 13% of national production. Dairy farming in Rio Grande do Sul is present in most municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul, although it is concentrated in the northwest portion of the state. Based on the geographical distribution of production and milked cows, there is also dairy activity in the south of the territory, but specifically in the southwest portion. This refers to the Pelotas micro-region, made up of ten municipalities, with emphasis on São Lourenço do Sul, Pelotas and Canguçu. Although still with a growing production, around 106 million liters in 2021, the participation of this micro-region in the national and state amount has been decreasing. Such behavior suggests that producers in the region are losing competitiveness to other micro-regions and/or other states. Competitiveness between agents in the same segment has one of its pillars in the proper management of production costs, in which the main strategy consists of producing a good at a lower cost than competitors. In addition, another element of competitiveness refers to the location and territorial dynamics in which the activity is inserted, which may or may not confer competitive advantages to the activity. In order to understand these two elements inherent to the competitiveness of milk production, it is necessary to use mathematical models that allow calculating the cost of production and tools, such as Geographic Information Systems, that allow indicating the location and relationship with other components of the territory. Thus, the objective of this work was to develop a pilot methodological approach, which combines the location and cost of milk production, in order to gather elements for understanding the competitiveness of milk production units in the region. Initially, a mathematical model was applied to calculate the cost of milk production, in two production units in the region. With the model it was possible to observe the items that make up the production cost. Among these, the cost of feeding the herd and the opportunity cost of production factors stand out. Through a literature review about the interference of location in the economy, two approaches were evidenced: the firm's point of view and the other from the productive agglomerations. The first focuses mainly on transport and labor costs. The second takes into account the social relations between agents in the territory, which may or may not confer competitive advantages to the business. In this way, it is understood that this approach, from the point of view of territorial development, can provide relevant information for public policies and/or other interventions in the territories.