Desperdícios de grãos de soja na logística rodoviária do agronegócio brasileiro

Abstract

The world produces about 2.5 billion tons of grain, the amount needed to meet global demand, even so, approximately one billion citizens in the world suffer from hunger, as 14% of this food is lost and 17% is wasted. The high production of soybeans raises concerns about losses in its logistical process, which in Brazil is mostly carried out by road, transported by non- specific trucks or trucks that are not in favorable conditions for transport, resulting in huge monetary losses. Given this, understanding the main causes of grain losses, mainly caused by road transport, will contribute to the increase in food production, meeting one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century, related to meeting the growing world need for food. Thus, the objective of this work is to identify the main causes of grain losses, specifically soy, in road transport and to point out possible solutions to mitigate such losses. In search of current and relevant information on the modes of transport of soy, the main factors related to the theme were listed, such as: logistics; types of modes: waterway; road; rail; air; and logistical modalities in agribusiness. In order to achieve the proposed objective, 3 papers that dealt with the theme of losses in the transport of soybeans and 4 that dealt with possible solutions for such losses were analyzed. Based on these works, the main problems pointed out by the authors can be divided into four groups, namely: (i) inappropriate conditions of the roads, (ii) poor condition of vehicles (iii) lack of other modes of transport and, (iv) poor product handling. With regard to solutions that mitigate such losses, the following were found: privatization of roads, government investments in modes other than road, construction of metallic silos, training of drivers and the use of suitable trucks. Therefore, it is understood that Brazil is highly profitable with regard to production but has a negative balance with regard to logistical costs. Soybean losses in the road modal can be avoided by investments not only public, but also private, whether by producers and transport companies.