Effect of the Substitution of Sugarcane for Food Supply Crops in Goiás

Abstract

This article analyses the effect of replacing food crops with sugarcane in Goiás, according to mesoregions, between 2013 and 2020. The research intends to contribute to the discussion about the themes related to the changes that have occurred in the areas under plantation, production, and the value of sugarcane, rice, beans, corn, and soybeans. The database used is taken from IBGE's Municipal Livestock Production Survey. The results indicate that there was a rapid expansion of sugarcane production, which followed a similar direction as corn and soybeans, but with beans maintaining a very slow production rate. Sugarcane production is heavily concentrated in a single mesoregion of Goiás, which highlights a series of alerts regarding the spatial heterogeneity of this crop's production. The work concludes that there are strong indications that sugarcane is substituting rice production, but the same has not happened with beans.