A fruticultura e o desenvolvimento local: o caso do núcleo produtivo de fruticultura irrigada de Limoeiro do Norte - Ceará

Abstract

The cultivation of fruits, an important segment of the agricultural sector, has assumed a relevant position in the State of Ceará, specially in the municipal district of Limoeiro do Norte, which has been indefied as Centro de Estratégias de Desenvolvimento do Ceará (Development Strategic Center of Ceará)- as nucleus of cultivation of irrigated fruits. The objective of this study is to assess the importance of this nucleus for the development of the municipal district of Limoeiro do Norte. For the study, primary and secondary data were used. The table and descriptive approches were applied. The primary data was gathered by questionnaire application and the secondary data was obtained from Ceará Planning Institute (IPLANCE). The results show that there is a large regional variability at the upper and lower side of the nucleus. The main fruits produced by nucleus are banana, papaya, and guava, the average yield was higher than other important Northeast benefit generated by the nucleus was an increase in income and employment. The cooperatives and associations have not grown as expected by the producers. It was observed that after the intensification of governmental incentives for the cultivation of irrigated fruits, there was an increase in industrial, service and commerce sectores in the municipal district. In order to develop the sector, we suggest an improvement in the productive infrastructures, support to the commercialization and construction of fruits processing plants aiming to make better use of the raw material. It is also necessary, as development strategy, to provide incentives to transform the nucleus into productive arrangements. The participation of government is necessary in order to show to producers the benefits of this transformation.