23
Worldof vegetable
gardens
n
n
n
Brazil isoneof themainglobalvegetableproducers,withfive
crops inthespotlight,amongthemcassavaandwatermelon
Carrot, tomatoandonion,other
Brazilianitemsofglobal relevance
T
he highlight does not achieve
the importance of some agri-
business commodities, let
alone in exports, but in oleri-
culture crops Brazil occupies a
position among the biggest world produc-
ers, if relevant items are included in the
segment, like cassava and watermelon.
In these crops, in particular, the Country
ranks as fourth biggest producer, compet-
ing with Indonesia for the third position
in the case of cassava. These are the most
important Brazilian olericulture products
that weigh heavily in the amount of global
volumes produced.
Carrots, tomatoes and onions pro-
duced in Brazil also occupy a relevant po-
sition in global terms. In the case of the first
of them, although no official numbers are
available, surveys conducted in Brazil at-
test that the Country ranks as seventh larg-
est global producer, coming right after Po-
land. The same position belongs to Brazil
in the case of industrial tomatoes, whilst in
the total crop, the Country ranks as ninth.
Onions produced in Brazil fit into the same
level, however, big amounts are imported
tomeet domestic consumption needs.
In two other types of vegetables Bra-
zil occupies a prominent position, as tenth
biggest producer: melon and fresh vege-
tables, which comprise several items, like
beet, radish and watercress, according to
a survey by the Food and Agriculture Orga-
nization of the United Nations (FAO). In an-
other greatly imported product, garlic, the
Country ranks as 13th biggest global pro-
ducer. With regard to yam, an item specif-
ically considered by the FAO, the Country
ranks as 15th biggest producer, and pro-
duction is estimated at 247 thousand tons.
Sweet potatoes and English potatoes,
the former largely produced, particularly in
AsiaandAfrica,andthelatter,themostculti-
vatedvegetable in theworld, inAsia, Europe
and America, with Brazil ranking as one of
the twenty leading producers. In the re-
spective crops, Brazil occupies the 18th and
twentieth positions in the world, according
to themost recent numbers released by the
FAO, relative to 2014. China, by far the lead-
ing producer of olericulture crops, is the
leader in the two crops mentioned above,
aswell as inall themajor crops of the sector,
inwhich Brazil is also a relevant player, with
the exception of cassava and yam, where
the leadership belongs toNigeria.
Inor Ag. Assmann
