Land for Planting, Harvesting and Sickness? Agricultural Production, Pesticides and Disease in Goiás, Brazil (2000 to 2013)
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DOI: 10.14393/SN-v32-2020-46823 Received: 28 January 2019 |Accepted: 04 March 2020 Land for planting, harvesting and sickness? Agricultural production, pesticides and disease in Goiás, Brazil (2000 to 2013) Giovana Galvão Tavares1 Antonio Cezar Leal2 Francisco Itami Campos3 Dulcinea Maria Barbosa Campos4 Luan Herinque de Jesus5 Odaiza Ferreira de Sousa6 Keywords: Abstract Cerrado biome This article discusses the expansion of agribusiness in the state of Goiás, Poisoning Brazil, the use of toxic agrochemicals or pesticides, and the resulting Microregion of Ceres ailments contracted by the local population between 2000 and 2013, with emphasis on five municipalities located in the microregion of Ceres (Goianesia, Itapaci, Uruana, Rialma and Barro Alto). The approach employed in this study consisted of bibliographical research, an exploratory analysis of the data, and a non-parametric descriptive and statistical analysis. The findings reveal marked urban expansion in the aforementioned municipalities in the state of Goiás from 2000 to 2013, a shrinking Cerrado biome, and augmented agricultural productivity of sugarcane, corn and soy, accompanied by an increase in the number of poisoning victims, suicide attempts using pesticides, neoplasms and congenital malformations, according to data recorded in public health information systems. 1 Centro Universitário de Anápolis, Goiás, Brasil. E-mail: [email protected] 2 Universidade Estadual Paulista–Presidente Prudente, São Paulo, Brasil. E-mail: [email protected] 3 Centro Universitário de Anápolis, Goiás, Brasil. E-mail: [email protected] 4 Centro Universitário de Anápolis, Goiás, Brasil. E-mail [email protected] 5 Centro Universitário de Anápolis, Goiás, Brasil. E-mail: [email protected] 6 Centro Universitário de Anápolis, Goiás, Brasil. E-mail: [email protected] Soc. Nat. | Uberlândia, MG | v.32 | p.362-372 | 2020 | ISSN 1982-4513 362 TAVARES et al. Land for planting, harvesting and sickness? INTRODUCTION Conselho Nacional de Segurança Alimentar e Nutricional, Fundação Osvaldo Cruz and Instituto Nacional de Cancer José de Alencar Brazil’s agribusiness production chain has Gomes da Silva) and international agencies become dependent on the intensive use of (International Agency for Research on Cancer; agrochemicals that contaminate the environment Human Rights Watch). It should be noted that and impair the health of living beings, causing the topics discussed here include those that sickness among humans, the extinction of correlate chronic and congenital diseases with animal and plant species, and increasing the use of pesticides, especially in areas where pesticide resistance (ABREU; ALONZO, 2016; agribusiness is territorialized. CARNEIRO et. al., 2015; JOBIM, 2010; PORTO; In this context, this article discusses the SOARES, 2012; SILVA, 2005; STOPPELLI, expansion of agribusiness in the state of Goiás, 2005). the use of pesticides and illnesses in the According to Albuquerque et al. (2015), population in the years 2000 to 2013, with Brazilian agribusiness generated 8.8 billion emphasis on five municipalities located in the dollars for the national trade balance in 1991, microregion of Ceres, state of Goiás, Brazil, and 79.4 billion dollars in 2012. From 2000 to namely: Goianésia, Itapaci, Uruana, Rialma and 2008, the global pesticide market showed a Barro Alto. growth of 45.4%, while the domestic pesticide We sought to answer the following questions: market increased by 176.0%. Since then, Brazil from 2000 to 2013, was there an increase in the has become one of the world’s 10 largest production of sugarcane, corn and soybeans, pesticide consumer markets, thereby increasing allied to an increase in the use of pesticides in the health risks of the population exposed to the municipalities surveyed? During those same toxic agrochemicals. years, did cases of diseases such as cancer, Agribusiness is one of the main economic congenital malformation and pesticide poisoning development activities in Goiás. Its increase in the municipalities surveyed? To what territorialization in the state was heterogeneous types of pesticide is the population of those and it was organized considering the region’s municipalities exposed? topography and abundance of water resources, These questions were answered based on among other factors (MATOS, 2013). This model data available in the following information of agricultural production has expanded in the systems: Mauro Borges Institute, Center for state, especially that of soybean, corn and Toxicological Information of Goiás (CIT/GO); sugarcane. National Toxicology and Pharmacology According to the Mauro Borges Institute of Information System (SINITOX); State of Goiás Statistics and Socioeconomic Studies (IMB), the Health Information System; Cancer Information productivity of the three aforementioned crops System (SISCAN); Mortality Information System increased between 2000 and 2013, indicating an (SIM), Information System for Notifiable intensification in the use of agrochemical Diseases (SINAN); Ministry of Agriculture, products (IMB, 2018). According to the Health Livestock and Food Supply (MAPA), and Goiás Surveillance Report of Populations Exposed to Agricultural Defense Agency (AGRODEFESA). Pesticides in the State of Goiás (BRASIL, 2016), The methodological procedure used in this these products include toxic chemicals such as study also consisted of exploratory data analysis, pesticides and herbicides, which contributed aimed at examining the data before applying any directly or indirectly to increase sickness due to statistical technique in order, whenever possible, acute or chronic toxicity. to understand and compile the data garnered The harmful effects of pesticides on human from the various information systems and health have therefore been the focus of research physical files and then make a descriptive and not only by the national (ABREU; ALONZO, non-parametric statistical analysis. The research 2016; CORCINO, 2019; JOBIM, 2010; PORTO; sampling criterion was the total resident SOARES, 2012; SILVA, 2005; STOPPELLI, population of the municipalities studied in the 2005) and international scientific community microregion of Ceres, in the state of Goiás, (ACQUAVELLA, 1998; ALAVANJA et al., 2003; Brazil. 2004; DOULL; LEVINE, 1993; EATON, 2008; LEVINE; DOULL, 1992), but also by national institutions (Fórum Estadual de Combate aos AGRIBUSINESS – POLICIES, Impactos dos Agrotóxicos do Estado do Rio de UTILIZATION AND POISONING Janeiro, Associação Brasileira de Saúde Coletiva, Soc. Nat. | Uberlândia, MG | v.32 | p.362-372 | 2020 | ISSN 1982-4513 363 TAVARES et al. Land for planting, harvesting and sickness? In the 1970s, agribusiness led to the Commodity production is established, restructuring of Brazil’s territory, with a ―strong attracting to its territory large multinational presence of the State in the articulation between companies of the agricultural sector. This agents involved in modern production networks, resulted in the industrialization of bringing about a closer relationship and agriculture and in the process of creating the interdependence between agriculture and large conglomerates that command industry‖ (CASTILHO, 2007, p.35). In Goiás, this production (SILVEIRA, 2016, p. 122). restructuring took place through a project aimed at integrating the Northeast with the Amazon According to the IMB (2013), agriculture in region and the Brazilian Highlands (Planalto the state of Goiás specializes in the production of Central), which invested resources in the commodities. In a bulletin, the IMB stated that construction of highways, airports and (the production offoods such as rice and beans telecommunications networks for economic are negligible vis-à-vis the state’s total expansion. agricultural volume. The document pointed out In 1975, through the Cerrado Development that Goiás was one of the country’s largest rice Program (POLOCENTRO), which was producers, and that in 2013 its production established by Decree no. 75320 of 29 Jan 1975, volume was only 1.26% of the national volume, a investments were made in research, technical finding that was confirmed at a national level assistance, reforestation, financing of motorized patrols, and the expansion of support Currently, the total area on which rice, infrastructure (transport, energy and storage) beans, wheat and cassava are grown and of rural credit. corresponds to close to 8.5 million hectares, According to Estevam (1997), the mechanism which is smaller than the total area covered that capitalized agricultural activity in Goiás by sugarcane. Moreover, the total area given was rural credit, which subsidized inputs, over to growing these four crops plus machinery and equipment. Rural financing was sugarcane corresponds to about 17 million the main factor responsible for mechanized hectares, in other words, half the size of the agriculture and the growth of the agricultural area dedicated to soybean production machinery industry. Between 1970 and 1985, (BOMBARDI, 2017, p.28). rural credit in Goiás showed a 7% higher growth rate than in Brazil’s other states According to The author also points out that the area three Censuses of Agriculture, conducted by dedicated to the production of the items that Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística make up the staple foods basket (rice, beans, (IBGE), the number of tractors in Goiás rose manioc flour and wheat) has decreased, while significantly from 5,692 units in 1970 to 33,548 the area used for the production of soy and