Technology transfer generates income also to other producers.
The success of the Paraná Wood Group (GPW) started with the planting of its own forests. The group’s growth in the past 14 years is due mainly to the view of its owner, physician João Luiz Garcia de Faria, who decided management processes to the field and invest in Agribusiness. With help from Douglas Mendes – who started to work with forests when he was just a boy – and Dalço dos Santos, who has a life dedicated to cattle farming and agriculture, customized processes and methodologies, the trio has been innovating in the state of Paraná.
From an initial area of 200 hectares planted with eucalyptus in the region of São Jerônimo da Serra, in Northern Paraná, the group currently holds 1,460 hectares of own forests. The entire area is divided into lots, with planting, handling and technologies customized for each lot. High-quality Eucapinus seedlings, mechanized harvesting, cutting, removal and transportation to the lumber company by their own teams using their own equipment, ensures a self-sustainable, highly profitable production. With integration and appropriate handling, fertilization, technology, and expertise of its employees, it has an average production of 65 cubic meters per hectare per year, well above the national average of 36 cubic meters per hectare/year.
The processes can be transferred, generating income also for other landowners. “GPW works in partnerships with people who own land but are not satisfied with their gains. We present them our methodology where we can reach a much higher gain, together with a large company than just working by themselves”, Garcia de Faria explains.
It saves expenses since the infrastructure required for harvesting timber is quite expensive. “One needs trucks, tractors, equipment. And not everyone is in the position of working in a high-yield, precision business. They need partners. The producer sometimes has only a small tractor inside his area and is not able to purchase the necessary pieces of equipment”, he says. Partnerships are entered in a one-to-one basis. It all depends on the interest of the owner of the area to be exploited. “It can be a lease, partnership, final profit sharing”, the physician and entrepreneur explains. In addition, GPW also works with its own team, providing highly specialized human resource.