As relações contratuais no setor leiteiro no contexto do agribusiness

Abstract

The relations ofproduction and processing may not be understand for themselves alone, but in a intersectorial perspective. From the 70's decade on, the food processing industry in Brazil has modernized and diversified. In many food chains, the productive segment has followed the industrial development, and this begam to require specific quality products and in quantities at the right time, adopting formal contracts for their supplies. In the milkbusiness system, this fact didn't occurred. For this reason, this study aimed to analyze the region milk setor contractual relationships, identifying the main ways ofinstitutional organization among producers and agribusiness industries, and the consequence ofthis process for both parts. Specifically, it aimed to identify and to caracterize the milk supply contracts that are utilized by the processing industry placed in this region; to identify the main conflicts between producers and agribusiness industry and to identify the favorable and unfavorable aspects of contractual relations. The region ofstudy was south ofMinas Gerais state. Its metodology consisted in questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with milk industries' owners and milk farmers. It was verified that there are a lot of kinds of milk supplies contractual arrangements but ali ofthem are informal. There are, also, many conflicts between milk farmers and industries, because the contractual relations rules and details are not considered. The problems detected by this study were: the contract durability, supply exclusivity, product delivery and classification, price and form of payment, and the contractual informality. And, finally, itwas noted that industry has more advantages than producers, in the present situation ofmilk commercialization. This fact may explain the resistence to change. Milk producers would be benefitted with a new system of contractual relation, formal and structered by both parts. In this contract, the defínition of matters like production quality, volume and regularity is essential.