The Intersectionality Between Amazon and Commodities Production: A Close Look at Sustainability

Food production’s environmental, economic, and social challenges should be demystified through quantitative data. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to investigate the ecoregional sustainability of the Amazon biome from the perspective of the environmental life cycle, economic feasibility, a...

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Main Authors: Adriane Terezinha Schneider, Rosangela Rodrigues Dias, Mariany Costa Deprá, Darissa Alves Dutra, Richard Luan Silva Machado, Cristiano Ragagnin de Menezes, Leila Queiroz Zepka, Eduardo Jacob-Lopes
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-10-01
Series:Land
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/10/1708
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author Adriane Terezinha Schneider
Rosangela Rodrigues Dias
Mariany Costa Deprá
Darissa Alves Dutra
Richard Luan Silva Machado
Cristiano Ragagnin de Menezes
Leila Queiroz Zepka
Eduardo Jacob-Lopes
author_facet Adriane Terezinha Schneider
Rosangela Rodrigues Dias
Mariany Costa Deprá
Darissa Alves Dutra
Richard Luan Silva Machado
Cristiano Ragagnin de Menezes
Leila Queiroz Zepka
Eduardo Jacob-Lopes
author_sort Adriane Terezinha Schneider
collection DOAJ
description Food production’s environmental, economic, and social challenges should be demystified through quantitative data. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to investigate the ecoregional sustainability of the Amazon biome from the perspective of the environmental life cycle, economic feasibility, and social life cycle analysis, emphasizing the pillars of sustainability in the production of three commodities: soybean, beef cattle, and Brazil nuts. Carbon footprint, net present value, and worker endpoint were the metrics evaluated. According to the results found in this study, the livestock presented greater environmental burdens in terms of carbon balance when compared to the production of Brazil nuts and soybean production with carbon balances in the order of 4.75 tCO<sub>2</sub>eq/ha, −0.02 tCO<sub>2</sub>eq/ha, and −1.20 tCO<sub>2</sub>eq/ha, respectively. From an economic viewpoint, the extractive production of Brazil nuts presented the highest net profit per hectare/year (USD 559.21), followed by the agricultural system (USD 533.94) and livestock (USD 146.19). Finally, in relation to the social aspect of the production systems analyzed, the negative impacts linked to beef cattle production are related to the subcategories of forced labor and equal opportunities, and the positive impacts linked to soybean production are related to the subcategories of salary and benefits. The results highlight a genuine and sustainable balance in Brazil nuts extraction, presenting it as an investment for a sustainable future while demystifying the multifaceted information related to food production as a whole, in order to assist in decision-making and the formulation of public policies.
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spelling doaj-art-422bbdb9efc6484c9e6a68adbd2873682025-08-20T02:10:54ZengMDPI AGLand2073-445X2024-10-011310170810.3390/land13101708The Intersectionality Between Amazon and Commodities Production: A Close Look at SustainabilityAdriane Terezinha Schneider0Rosangela Rodrigues Dias1Mariany Costa Deprá2Darissa Alves Dutra3Richard Luan Silva Machado4Cristiano Ragagnin de Menezes5Leila Queiroz Zepka6Eduardo Jacob-Lopes7Rural Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, UFSM, Roraima Avenue 1000, Santa Maria 97105-900, RS, BrazilRural Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, UFSM, Roraima Avenue 1000, Santa Maria 97105-900, RS, BrazilRural Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, UFSM, Roraima Avenue 1000, Santa Maria 97105-900, RS, BrazilRural Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, UFSM, Roraima Avenue 1000, Santa Maria 97105-900, RS, BrazilRural Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, UFSM, Roraima Avenue 1000, Santa Maria 97105-900, RS, BrazilRural Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, UFSM, Roraima Avenue 1000, Santa Maria 97105-900, RS, BrazilRural Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, UFSM, Roraima Avenue 1000, Santa Maria 97105-900, RS, BrazilRural Sciences Center, Federal University of Santa Maria, UFSM, Roraima Avenue 1000, Santa Maria 97105-900, RS, BrazilFood production’s environmental, economic, and social challenges should be demystified through quantitative data. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to investigate the ecoregional sustainability of the Amazon biome from the perspective of the environmental life cycle, economic feasibility, and social life cycle analysis, emphasizing the pillars of sustainability in the production of three commodities: soybean, beef cattle, and Brazil nuts. Carbon footprint, net present value, and worker endpoint were the metrics evaluated. According to the results found in this study, the livestock presented greater environmental burdens in terms of carbon balance when compared to the production of Brazil nuts and soybean production with carbon balances in the order of 4.75 tCO<sub>2</sub>eq/ha, −0.02 tCO<sub>2</sub>eq/ha, and −1.20 tCO<sub>2</sub>eq/ha, respectively. From an economic viewpoint, the extractive production of Brazil nuts presented the highest net profit per hectare/year (USD 559.21), followed by the agricultural system (USD 533.94) and livestock (USD 146.19). Finally, in relation to the social aspect of the production systems analyzed, the negative impacts linked to beef cattle production are related to the subcategories of forced labor and equal opportunities, and the positive impacts linked to soybean production are related to the subcategories of salary and benefits. The results highlight a genuine and sustainable balance in Brazil nuts extraction, presenting it as an investment for a sustainable future while demystifying the multifaceted information related to food production as a whole, in order to assist in decision-making and the formulation of public policies.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/10/1708soybeanbeefBrazil nutslife cycle assessmentsocial life cycleeconomic performance
spellingShingle Adriane Terezinha Schneider
Rosangela Rodrigues Dias
Mariany Costa Deprá
Darissa Alves Dutra
Richard Luan Silva Machado
Cristiano Ragagnin de Menezes
Leila Queiroz Zepka
Eduardo Jacob-Lopes
The Intersectionality Between Amazon and Commodities Production: A Close Look at Sustainability
Land
soybean
beef
Brazil nuts
life cycle assessment
social life cycle
economic performance
title The Intersectionality Between Amazon and Commodities Production: A Close Look at Sustainability
title_full The Intersectionality Between Amazon and Commodities Production: A Close Look at Sustainability
title_fullStr The Intersectionality Between Amazon and Commodities Production: A Close Look at Sustainability
title_full_unstemmed The Intersectionality Between Amazon and Commodities Production: A Close Look at Sustainability
title_short The Intersectionality Between Amazon and Commodities Production: A Close Look at Sustainability
title_sort intersectionality between amazon and commodities production a close look at sustainability
topic soybean
beef
Brazil nuts
life cycle assessment
social life cycle
economic performance
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/13/10/1708
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