The palm oil, also known as palm oil, is used as an input in different segments of the industry, with the main demand coming from the food market. The large-scale use is impressive: most consumers do not know that 50% of all products sold in supermarkets contain palm oil in their composition.
The cultivation of this palm tree in an agroforestry system is a sustainable innovation that Natura embraces. In addition to producing other commodities such as palm oil and cocoa, it provides food, fertilizer, timber, seeds, and other raw materials – a productive arrangement with high species diversity and different functions in the system.
The great differentiator of the Palm Oil Agroforestry System (SAF Dendê) is the cultivation of various species, including trees, alongside palm oil. It is a logic where everyone benefits: the management of the agroforestry system allows for the constant incorporation of organic matter into the soil, which favors a network of relationships between plants, soil, and microorganisms. The SAF Dendê is intelligent because it draws inspiration from nature and the beneficial relationships of its components, generating various environmental services such as soil, water, and sociobiodiversity conservation.
Ten years of field research have shown that palm oil can be cultivated in biodiverse systems and that it is possible to bring innovation and sustainability to the production chain of this oilseed as an alternative to monoculture.
Discover below the benefits of the SAF Dendê:
- Diversity of plants and products
- In the SAF, palm oil is surrounded by various food plants, oilseeds, timber, and fertilizer plants. Within this system, it grows strong and produces well, as all the plants are companions and benefit each other in different ways, whether by providing shade or producing organic matter. Foods such as açaí, pepper, and bacaba are produced in the same area, and plants like palm oil and cocoa have shown higher productivity within this system compared to monoculture. For this reason, the SAF Dendê can be used to recover degraded areas and legal reserves. With more nourished soil, carbon stocks in the land have greater longevity in production and contribute to mitigating the impacts of climate change.
- Conservation of natural resources
- One of the goals of the SAF Dendê is to seek to increase all forms of life, from microorganisms that ensure soil fertility to the diversity of plants, insects, birds, and other forest animals. The system hosts various species and functions as a refuge and ecological corridor, strengthening the network of beneficial interactions in nature and even sheltering endangered species, such as the anteater. Moreover, the SAF Dendê also adopts live ground cover, a conservation practice that ensures biological nitrogen fixation and green fertilization.
- Resistance to pests and diseases
- Due to its high diversity, the SAF Dendê has greater resilience. This promotes pest regulation and disease suppression, favoring natural biological control. Preventive control, such as the collection of Castnia pupae, also contributes to the low incidence of phytosanitary problems. Pheromones are used for capturing and monitoring the boll weevil. The red ring and fatal yellowing (AF) are the main problems for palm oil cultivated in Pará.
- Worker well-being and food sovereignty
- The ambient temperature in the SAF Dendê is more pleasant, as the system has trees that can provide shade. Additionally, the plants that will be placed alongside the palm oil are chosen by the farmer based on their interest in what they want to produce, whether for family consumption or trade. The process of innovation and experimentation is conducted on the farmers' properties, who participate in decision-making and knowledge management. The SAF Dendê is also a system that gains increasing autonomy over time, requiring less agricultural labor.
- Income diversification
- Within this SAF model, there are various products beyond palm oil, such as cocoa and açaí. The trees in the system have multiple uses: the timber reaches cutting cycle at the same time as the end of the palm oil production cycle (25 years); non-timber forest products, such as fruits and seeds like jatobá and andiroba, also generate cosmetic raw materials. In this way, the system diversifies the producer's income, something that is not offered in monoculture.
- Climate change
- The SAF Dendê increases carbon storage in the soil over time. This occurs mainly due to the type of management within the agroforestry system: the non-use of fire in land preparation, the non-tillage of the soil, and the addition of organic matter rich in carbon from the pruning of biomass from planted species, along with organic fertilizers, reduces emissions and gradually increases carbon input into the soil. According to the study The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB), the SAF Dendê currently generates three times more value in ecosystem services compared to monoculture, thus becoming a “climate friend.”
- Sustainable development
- The SAF Dendê can contribute to four of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations (UN): Zero Hunger and Sustainable Agriculture, Responsible Consumption and Production, Climate Action, and Life on Land.
It is for these reasons that Natura is committed to investing in sustainable development, advocating that it should not be an alternative, but a solution increasingly adopted in the production of raw materials.
