At 54 years old, our interviewee, who lives in Maia, began by defining what Sociedade Agro Pecuária Ribeira do Salto is, highlighting that it is an agro-livestock company, whose mission and objective is the production of organic milk. It is a private limited company between himself and his wife, which produces organic milk, but now focuses on regenerative agriculture.
About regenerative agriculture, he emphasizes that “it is an approach of conservation and rehabilitation of food and agricultural systems”. Simply put, with this new approach, “we abandon the current techniques that are currently practiced, which are aggressive for the environment, through practices that increase fertility, biodiversity and soil health, and the objective is also to produce while recovering the land and preserving the environment. All our activity starts in the soil, strengthening it and abandoning, for example, monoculture, but associating other crops with the introduction of other plants, such as peas, vetches, lupins, among others. With these regenerative techniques, the carbon footprint is reduced. However, these techniques only succeed in combination with new technologies, which start with a detailed analysis of the soil, including the analysis of plant sap.”
It should be noted that the harvests of these analyzes are then sent outside the Region, made through external consultants, from countries such as Argentina, the United States of America, the United Kingdom or even Portugal. “They are people who have a completely different know-how”, he added.
This reality is already being implemented at Sociedade Agro Pecuária Ribeira do Salto. “We are five producers, who have joined regenerative agriculture, who work with the Bel Group, which provides us with technical support. Grupo Bel is an industry that has clear and defined objectives, and the producers who also work with Grupo Bel, likewise know what they want and in this way the useful is joined to the pleasant “.
One hundred and fifty hectares
with 140 dairy cows and other animals
You should know that Sociedade Agro Pecuária Ribeira do Salto’s farm has about 150 hectares, with 140 dairy cows, plus a dozen that are in prepartum, that is, that at the moment do not produce milk.
In organic production mode, the cows at Sociedade Agro Pecuária Ribeira do Salto produce an average of 21 liters of milk per day.
Curiously, on the farm we came across the presence of other animals, namely geese, chickens, rabbits, horses, among others. To our curiosity, Luís Gonzaga said that “regenerative agriculture starts in the soil, but at the top of the pyramid is the animal. In other words, for the soil to regenerate, if there are no animals, the cycle is incomplete and the soil does not enrich. The presence of animals naturally stimulates plant growth. In short, “grazing on naturally fertilized soil only brings advantages”.
He added that “the less the soil is tilled, the better it influences the physical and chemical characteristics, improving water drainage and therefore the soil starts to produce more and better crops, benefiting animal feed, which in turn produces better milk and meat”.
At the entrance to the farm, which has three dedicated employees, we come across huge bales of grass. “We have more than a thousand and some from last year, as a complement to animal feed,” he said.
Implementation of for pollination underway
In the meantime, the implementation of a bee pollination structure on the farm is being approved, because pollinators are also important, because without them, there is no life.
In fact, there are three points that define the importance of bees for the environment: The first is their role in feeding the planet (a third of the world’s food production depends on bees); the second concerns agricultural sustainability (the pollination of flowers); the third point is the simple fact that bees are linked to the maintenance of biodiversity (if bees disappeared, the earth’s ecosystems would quickly collapse).
Luís Gonzaga is the President of the Board of the Cooperativa Agrícola da Costa Norte, CRL (Limited Liability Company), for eight years, which has about 200 members and 90 milk producers.
Around 30 million liters of milk are produced per year and the Cooperative closed the year 2022 with five million euros in turnover.
This is a young cooperative, which next Wednesday, August 16, will be 13 years old. “It appeared on the market with a very defined objective, that is, to improve the income of producers, an objective that has been achieved, in line with the industry it works with, Bel.
The Bel Group is a challenging industry in terms of challenging projects, which makes commitments to sustainable development. The cooperative, in order to be able to leverage its producers, who otherwise would not be able to be certified in any way due to lack of roads or lack of electricity, aligned with Bel’s objectives by providing conditions for its producers to be leveraged by these projects so that they could receive more money, and this is happening “.
It should be remembered that in 2021 the logistics complex of Cooperativa Agrícola da Costa Norte, CRL was inaugurated, as well as the milk collection point. The warehouse was built in 2014, but only opened its doors to members, according to Luís Gonzaga, in January 2017. After that, in September 2020, the construction of the innovative warehouse for the collection of three types of milk began: conventional milk, happy cows and organic milk, where all collection is done in an automated and digital way.
In terms of prospects for the future, the President of the Board of Directors of Cooperativa Agrícola da Costa Norte, CRL reinforces that “much has already been achieved, much remains to be done, namely in relation to the pedagogical training of its members, an objective that is part of my mission, as President, and of the cooperative, the construction of a new room, in the logistics complex “.
