Cadeia produtiva de alimentos agroecológicos: riscos de contaminação de produtos comercializados pelas organizações de controle social em Recife, Pernambuco

Abstract

In recent years, the population has come to realize the importance of consuming organic products, making agroecological fairs an economically viable alternative for purchasing these foods. The municipality of Recife is currently home to the largest number of agroecological fairs in the state of Pernambuco, some of which are made up of producers from different rural units and who often have no official form of organization to exchange knowledge about their processes and experiences, which directly reflects the efficiency of inspection and standardization procedures. The present study sought to analyze the risks of contamination by pesticides in the production chain of agroecological products sold in some of the fairs located in the city of Recife by the identifying these potential sources of contamination from harvest to delivery to the final consumer and the discussion of the processes of management aimed at organizing farmers as a fair, public supply equipment, as well as the procedures and processes used to guide the authorization process for new fairs in the municipality. This research took a qualitative approach, collecting predominantly descriptive data, where the analysis tended to follow an inductive context, with an exploratory character, seeking to provide greater familiarity with the problem through on-site monitoring of three rural properties. In general, non-conformities were found in the stages where water was used for production and irrigation, use of external inputs used in fertilization, production, storage in an inappropriate location, location for commercialization vulnerable to interference from external contamination and failures in production and stock control. Failure to comply with some steps described in the standards throughout the entire production process was identified, whether due to lack of technical, financial or information conditions. The product of this dissertation was a proposal for internal regulations, with basic requirements for setting up agroecological fairs where direct sales are practiced.