The Brazilian Federal Government launched, this Saturday (24), in the Santo Antônio da Fartura Settlement, in Campo Verde (MT), the Solo Vivo Program, an initiative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (Mapa) that aims to recover areas of degraded soil, strengthen the competitiveness of family farming and promote sustainable development in rural communities in Mato Grosso. In this initial stage, the program has an investment of R$42.8 million, directly benefiting around 800 to 1,000 families in 10 settlements in the state. The families served have, on average, properties that range from 10 to 15 hectares.

The activities cover the municipalities of Campo Verde, Alto Araguaia, Poconé, Rosário Oeste, Barra do Bugres, São Félix do Araguaia, Matupá, Juína, Pontes e Lacerda and São José dos Quatro Marcos.

Solo Vivo is the result of the collaboration between Mapa, the Federation of Agricultural Workers of Mato Grosso (Fetagri-MT) and the Federal Institute of Mato Grosso (IFMT). The initiative combines science, technology and social development, offering specialized technical support for soil management and correction, in addition to training and qualification of farming families.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva highlighted that the program represents a step forward in promoting equality in the countryside, by ensuring that small producers have access to the same technologies and conditions as large producers.

“The gesture that was made here today, delivering these machines to improve your productive capacity and improve the quality of the land. What will these machines prove? That when you allow the technology that the big ones use to reach the small ones, the small ones will have the chance to produce the same quantity and, with much more love, because they are not only thinking about selling. They are thinking about things to eat too,” declared the president.

The Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Carlos Fávaro, stressed that the program represents an essential step in addressing inequalities in the countryside, ensuring that small producers have access to the same technological and productive conditions as the big ones. Fávaro pointed out that Solo Vivo offers the necessary tools to recover the soil, increase productivity and promote income generation, employment and quality of life in rural communities.

“Mato Grosso is a state that breaks all production records, but it is also a state of great inequalities. Not everyone here has the same conditions to produce. And that is why we are launching the Solo Vivo Program, so that small producers have access to the same technologies as the big ones. The machines are here, the inputs, such as limestone and phosphate, are here. They know how to produce, they have a talent. There was a lack of opportunity, and that is what we are offering. Today we are laying the foundation for everything that needs to be done: recovering the soil, preparing it to receive the seed and, from there, planting whatever you want, generating income, producing food and having quality of life,” highlighted Fávaro.

The IFMT is responsible for the technical execution of the first stage of the program, carrying out sample collection, laboratory analyses and preparing reports that guide interventions in the field. The work mobilizes a team composed of professors, researchers, technicians and students, in addition to the use of technological tools such as the SolIF software and a digital management system that allows real-time monitoring of activities.

Based on the reports, the specific needs of each property are identified, with recommendations on the application of inputs, such as limestone and phosphate, in addition to technical guidance on the most suitable crops for each type of soil. The objective is to increase productivity, restore soil quality and ensure the sustainability of crops.

“IFMT is proud to be a partner in this wonderful project, the Solo Vivo Program, an initiative that generates employment, income, quality of life, dignity and hope, in addition to strengthening production chains. We thank Minister Carlos Fávaro and his team for their support, affection and for believing in education, research and extension. The Federal Institute of Mato Grosso will work hard to become an increasingly important tool for transforming people's lives,” emphasized the rector Júlio César dos Santos.

In addition to soil diagnosis and correction, the program offers free training for farmers and technicians. More than 180 people have already participated in the online course “Living Soil Methodology: From Sample Collection to Soil Analysis,” developed by IFMT, which disseminates technical knowledge and strengthens the replication of the methodology in the state and, in the future, in other regions of the country.

During the event, agricultural machinery was delivered by the Strategic Program for Structural Strengthening of Rural Settlements and Sustainability of Family Farming, a partnership between MAPA and the Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT). The action benefits 38 municipalities in Mato Grosso, with the objective of improving working conditions, increasing productivity and boosting the income of settled families.

“I would like to thank the minister Carlos Fávaro, who has been a valuable partner for the Federal University of Mato Grosso. Together with our support foundation, Uniselva, we are currently delivering more than R$20 million in equipment to workers and small producers in family farming. I would like to highlight, Minister, your commitment to higher education, to the Federal University of Mato Grosso and to actions that strengthen family farming and promote development,” emphasized the rector Marluce Silva.

Machinery acquired through the National Program for Modernization and Support of Agricultural Production (Promaq) was also presented, which aims to modernize production processes and strengthen the infrastructure of family farming in settlements.

The event also marked the delivery of 78 land titles to families from the settlements of Santo Antônio da Fartura (Campo Verde) and Salete Strozac (Guiratinga), in an action by the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Family Farming (MDA). The regularization of the lands, which total an area of ​​1,764.86 hectares, represents greater legal security for farmers, easier access to public policies and rural credit, in addition to generating greater stability and economic development for the communities. The total investment in regularization exceeds R$397. thousand.

“What is being done here today is an example for agrarian reform. Agrarian reform settlements are land, credit, and technical assistance, as the Federal Institute of Mato Grosso is doing, providing guidance on soil and planting. It also provides access to markets, with programs such as the Food Acquisition Program (PAA) and the National School Feeding Program (PNAE), which had their resources expanded under President Lula’s government. Strengthening family farming means putting cheaper fruits, vegetables and legumes on the tables of the Brazilian people, feeding Brazil adequately and ensuring dignity for rural families,” declared the Minister of Agrarian Development and Family Farming, Paulo Teixeira.

The president of the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES), Aloizio Mercadante, highlighted the institution’s role in strengthening agriculture and promoting economic development in Mato Grosso. According to him, access to credit is essential to boost production, improve working conditions in the countryside and expand opportunities for small and medium-sized producers.

“BNDES has made a huge effort to strengthen the economic development of Mato Grosso, with credit, support for agriculture, agribusiness and infrastructure. In the first quarter of this year, we released R$1.768 billion in agricultural credit for the state, an increase of 782% compared to the same period of the previous government. This means more resources for producers, more jobs, income and development for the countryside and cities,” he pointed out.

Also present at the launch of the Solo Vivo Program were the president of the Central Bank, Gabriel Galípolo; the president of the Board of Directors of Embrapa, Carlos Ernesto Augustin; the president of Fetagri-MT, Divino Martins de Andrade; the president of Incra, Carlos Fernando Aldrighi; the executive director of Conab, Rosa Neide Sandes de Almeida; the representative of the national leadership of MST/MT, Valdeir dos Santos Souza; and the president of Famato, Vilmondes Tomain.

Also present were state deputies Valdir Barranco, Lúdio Cabral, Eduardo Botelho, Júlio Campos, Wilson Santos, Henrique, Chico Guarnieri and Doutor Eugênio, in addition to representatives of productive sector, such as Erai Maggi, Elusmar Shefer Maggi, Fernando Shefer Maggi and Alexandre Schenkel, and community leaders from the settlements, such as Dalete Soares de Souza, Gildo Marcolino de Lima, Renato Cirino de Araújo, Lucimar Martins Dias, Dorivaldo Aparecido Dias, Olivede de Alcântara Ludwig, Raimunda Leopoldina da Silva and Reginaldo Gonçalves Campos.