“I see agricultural production cooperatives in Brazil as very successful, with significant growth year after year, with longevity…”
Fernando Degobbi is the CEO of Coopercitrus – Cooperativa de Produtores Rurais, with a degree in agricultural engineering from the Federal University of Lavras, a specialization in management from Fundação Dom Cabral, and a marketing specialist from Fundação Getúlio Vargas.
AgriBrasilis – How do you see the evolution of agricultural cooperatives in the next 10 years?
Fernando Degobbi – I see agricultural production cooperatives in Brazil as very successful, with significant growth year after year, with longevity. When we compare cooperatives with other market segments we do not always see such a tendency. And mainly I see cooperatives generating prosperity for the regions and cooperative members that are served.
AgriBrasilis – Is diversification the main strategy of Coopercitrus?
Fernando Degobbi – Diversification at Coopercitrus is an important strategy. When we decide to operate in more than one market segment, we are having more permanent and effective contact with our members, which gives us the opportunity to contribute to the evolution of production processes.
“Having georeferenced areas, working with equipment to generate soil conservation projects, in addition to planting projects, allows us to make better use of the area”
AgriBrasilis – What are the main forms of support that cooperatives offer to farmers, besides financial services and supply of inputs?
Fernando Degobbi – The forms of support that we offer to cooperative members are: supply of inputs through efficient logistics and competitive prices; in the financial area, we always work with attractive rates for installment payments and, more recently, we launched a Fintech, which will support farmers in their financial management, which will be very important for improving the cooperative-member relationship.
AgriBrasilis – How important is the georeferencing of farms and what types of maps are generated?
Fernando Degobbi – The Digital Field area of Coopercitrus works with digital technologies and precision agriculture tools aiming for a better use of the area and to optimize the production process. In this context, having georeferenced areas, working with equipment to generate soil conservation projects, in addition to planting projects, allows us to make better use of the area, adding approximately 10% to the number of plants and also reducing maneuvers by up to 25%, which generates better results and a helps to lower impacts on the environment.
AgriBrasilis – How are real-time reports (RTR) obtained and how do they help farmers make more informed decisions?
Fernando Degobbi – Our employees generate real-time visit reports during the various opportunities they have to visit the properties of the cooperative members. These reports are important because they can be generated through smartphones and tablets, they are 100% linked to our cooperative member relationship management system and support us in understanding the situation of the crops and their stage of development.
AgriBrasilis – How will the acquisition of 15% of Agroallianz from the DVA Group contribute to the growth and diversification of Coopercitrus? How much was invested?
Fernando Degobbi – Our partnership with Agroallianz is very strategic, as it fills a gap in post-patent products in specific regions where the cooperative operates. In this way, we want to complete our portfolio and have an increasingly competitive position, in addition to supporting our farmers in everything they need for their development.
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