Sílvio Ávila
Sílvio Ávila
42
Room for
growth
Positive balance
The Ipef members produced 253.8 kilograms of seed in 2015. In the previous year, the
amount reached 500 kilograms. The small quantity produced, according to the manager of
Forest Products and Services, is directly related to the low precipitation levels over the past
two years. “The dry period was a determining factor that caused the flower buds to drop and,
consequently, resulted in the production of small amounts of fruit and seeds”, he clarifies.
The seed trade in 2015 reached 380.31 kilograms. Of this amount, 302.31 kilograms are
exotic species: 290 kilograms of Eucalyptus spp and 12.31 kilograms of Pinus spp. Native
trees amounted to a total of 75.15 kilograms of seeds. The perspective for the production of
seedlings from the amount of seeds delivered in 2015 reaches 23.5 million, for covering an
estimated area of 15 thousand hectares.
The
Forest
Science
andResearchInstitute
(Ipef)maintainsthat
synchronismbetween
offeranddemand
coulddrivetheseed
market inthis sector
productivity of the sector, enhancement tech-
nologies, based on controlled crossings, that
is, seedlings coming from seeds, never stop.
The development of the supply chain
started in the 1960s, driven by fiscal incen-
tives. Demand continued rising until the
late 1990s, when clonal plantings started.
Over this period, and up to the present, the
Forest Science and Research Institute (Ipef )
has been engaged in the production and
sales of seeds, consolidating as a big glob-
al center of exotic species and native trees.
The work of the entity in the area of tech-
nology is aimed at making production via-
ble, turning it into a profitable business.
According to Israel Gomes Vieira, Prod-
ucts and Services manager at the Ipef, now
Brazil is a reference in terms of enhancing
productive species. “It is only a question of
considering the results of our silviculture
business”, he remarks. Specific legislation
that rules the segment of seeds and tree
seedlings also adds to the reputation of
the Country, as it makes production trace-
ability possible. However, the official ad-
mits that harvesting, processing and ware-
housing forest seeds is a challenge that still
needs to be overcome, especially due to
the big diversity of species.
Another hurdle, according to Vieira, is
that the establishment of new seed pro-
ducing areas of productive species has not
happened in the national territory for over
20 years. “We are going through a period
characterized by the loss of genetic mate-
rials and deficiency in the generation of
new clones, coming from specific cross-
ings, which is a priority of the market”, he
recalls. “The production of commercial
seeds is almost entirely restricted to native
species and supply is running below the
necessary quantities and quality”.
The inexistence of synchronism be-
tween offer and demand, in his view, pre-
NOVAS FLORESTAS
New Forests
Produção e negócios de sementes
florestais (em quilos)
Fonte:
Instituto de Pesquisas e Estudos Florestais
(Ipef), com base em seu quadro de associados
Ano Produção Comercialização
2010
1.780
1.460
2011
1.980
1.400
2012
1.985
1.350
2013
2.564
687
2014
500
575
2015 253,80
380,31
Seeds are viewed as basic input in the
establishment of forests and also in the re-
covery of degraded areas. For establishing
production forests, particularly eucalyptus
stands, almost in their entirety the areas are
devoted to clonal seedlings, coming from
vegetative propagation. Most pine forests
and planted forests come from seeds, con-
sisting of seedlings that grow from seeds.
For the Country to achieve the biggest global
vents production from growing. “Deficient
seed supply is the biggest difficulty faced
by several projects of an ample scope, but
its market lacks incentive, a fact that makes
investments in production unviable,” he
emphasizes. Nowadays, Ipef officials un-
derstand that commercial viability is fun-
damental for the producers to refrain from
abandoning the activity. “The seed in-
put should be highly valued and its mar-
ket should be organized so as to continue
growing”, he comments.
