Challenges for the Brazilian Agricultural Innovation System

The Brazilian agricultural innovation system benefits from the strength of public research institutions, notably the Brazilian Corporation for Agricultural Research (Embrapa), which has permitted the development of innovations adapted to practical problems. These innovations have been quickly adopted by large, commercial farms, resulting in high agricultural productivity and production growth. Continuous public investment and high research intensity have created a large capacity in agricultural R&D, which is well-recognised at the regional and world level. Much needed efforts to improve the co-ordination of agricultural R&D organisations and to encourage partnerships among public and private actors are ongoing. Rationalising efforts and exploiting synergies will become all the more important in the current economic slowdown in the country. The difficult business environment and the lack of capacity in local agri-food companies, however, limit private investment in agricultural innovation. It is therefore important to maintain public research infrastructure and capacity in the long term. Quicker and wider adoption of innovation at the farm level is also needed to respond to future challenges and opportunities, and to maintain high productivity growth while improving sustainability performance. Strengthening the capacity of the public advisory system to reach a wider range of farmers within a more integrated innovation system would help in that regard.