Top
harvests
T
he municipality of Dona Francis-
ca, in the central region of Rio
Grande do Sul, is one of the pi-
oneers in the production of irri-
gated rice in Brazil. A division of
the 37th Rural Extension Nucleus (Nate) of
the Rio Grande do Sul Rice Institute (Irga),
it is home to the biggest concentration of
rice producers in the State, by virtue of the
size of the rural properties. Although cul-
tivating smaller areas, the rice farmers of
the so-called Fourth Colony usually obtain
positive results season after season. In the
2016/17crop survey, publishedby the Irga in
early February, average productivitywas es-
timated at 8,300 kilograms per hectare.
Farmer Rogério José Pesarico, 47, usually
celebrates good productivity levels in his rice
RogérioPesarico,farmerinthemunicipality
ofDonaFrancisca, inRioGrandedoSul, isa
referenceintheproductionofriceandhas
harvested11,100kilogramsperhectare
fields. In 2016, despite the problems brought
about by excessive precipitation and by the
the Jacuí River floods, he reached an average
of 9,350 kilograms per hectare, way above the
average in the state, which remained at 6,928
kilograms per hectare. In 2017, under better
weather conditions, the expectation is for a
muchbigger crop inhis 48-hectare field– split
into areas of 18 to 30 hectares in the districts
of Linha Grande and Várzea do Agudo. “The
fields are well structured, clean and free of
pestsanddiseases”,hecommemorates.
Son and grandson of rice farmers, he is
a reference in the administration of his farm
in the region. In 2016, despite the erratic
Inor Ag. Assmann
98
