Cluster Analysis Referring to Rural Enterprises of Sugarcane Local Productive Arrangement (LPA) in Quirinópolis, Brazil

Abstract

In Brazil in recent decades, the the dynamics of land use widened the agricultural frontier for sugarcane cultivation by modifying and replacing intensively traditional and pasture crops. It is proposed to examine the aggregating characteristics of rural enterprises that are part of the sugarcane agribusiness productive arrangement, evaluating their profiles, providing a more effective understanding of their socioeconomic sustainability. The quantitative approach was adopted applying statistical tests for variable selection and multivariate statistical techniques (cluster analysis) to evaluate rural enterprises. The results indicated two clusters with peculiar profiles, and the average distance between farm and agribusiness (± 22 km) and succession capacity (± 2.5 points) of both are similar. The other variables were discrepant (P <0.05), in cluster 1 the very negative rural exodus (-48%) and in cluster 2 positive (23%). Operating costs in relation to compensation for Cluster 1 was 61%, much higher than cluster 2 with 6% on average. It was concluded that through cluster analysis that the contract variables and the size of the establishment are the most significant factors directly influencing the rural exodus and production costs. These observations contribute to the creation of sectorial policies for the use of land and regional economic development, as such imply in a theoretical consolidation of precepts on the sugarcane expansion, as such also imply, under the perspective of the rural practice, in elements for the improvement in planning the agricultural enterprise.