Biodiversity

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New paradigms for Atlantic Forest agriculture and

conservation

Vinicius Marcilio-Silva & Marcia C. M. Marques

To cite this article: Vinicius Marcilio-Silva & Marcia C. M. Marques (2017): New paradigms for
Atlantic Forest agriculture and conservation, Biodiversity, DOI: 10.1080/14888386.2017.1408493

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/14888386.2017.1408493

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 Biodiversity, 2017
https://doi.org/10.1080/14888386.2017.1408493
New paradigms for Atlantic Forest agriculture and conservation
Vinicius Marcilio-Silva and Marcia C. M. Marques
Laboratório de Ecologia Vegetal, Departamento de Botânica, Setor de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil
ARTICLE HISTORY  Received 14 June 2017; Accepted 20 November 2017
Introduction
The Atlantic Forest biome, a biodiversity hotspot that has
been extremely degraded (Myers 2003), harbours a large
part of Brazil’s agricultural land, and is inhabited by more
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than 125 million people (Lapola et al. 2014). This biome
encompasses extensive urban areas such as the metro-
politan areas of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the two
largest Brazilian cities. From the original forested areas, a
mere 12% (~160 000 km²) are still covered by forest, and
less than half of these are in protected areas (SOS Mata
Atlântica & INPE, 2017). Covering the Brazilian Atlantic
coast, the Atlantic Forest was the first forested area to be
colonised in Brazil. Human presence is responsible for
reducing the biome by ten times from its original surface
area. Currently, scientists (Lapola et al. 2014; Strassburg
et al. 2014; Phalan et al. 2016; Alves-Pinto et al. 2017;
Marcilio-Silva et al.) are looking for ways to change this
paradigm of economic and agricultural development
which comes at such a grave cost to nature. The Brazilian
development was marked by changes, and now, as dis-
cussed below, the change should be towards sustainability.
Brief history of agriculture in the Atlantic Forest
The historian Warren K. Dean (1996) described the
Atlantic Forest in the last decades as a history marked
by devastation, exploration and destruction. The Atlantic
Forest is just a fraction of what it originally was. This is
due to both a millennia of indigenous subsistence agri-
culture as well as the decades after European colonisation,
with the accelerated industrialisation of a colonial govern-
ment and bourgeois pursuing a fast, and irresponsible,
economic development (Dean 1996). In this way, indige-
nous peoples, settlers, landowners, industrials and rulers
have all played their part in the destruction of this biome.
CONTACT  Vinicius Marcilio-Silva  viniciuschms@gmail.com
© 2017 Biodiversity Conservancy International
Although some of these groups have done this exploration
in a relatively balanced manner during long time periods
(e.g. indigenous peoples), others have developed preda-
tory ways to explore the Atlantic Forest in large scales, as
is the case of the European settlers that arrived in South
America in the sixteenth century (Dean 1996).
The Atlantic Forest was the first biome explored by the
Portuguese and, since then, its natural resources have been
extracted, with the first victim being the Brazilian wood
(Caesalpinia echinata) called pau-brasil in Portuguese.
This wood, which provides an intense red dye and gave
the country its name, was intensively logged during the
first century of Brazilian colonisation (Arruda and Piletti
1996). Also, in the early sixteenth century, the colony
started to focus on the extraction of precious metals,
which boosted international trade through maritime
exports (Prado Junior 2006). The introduction of sug-
arcane in northeast Brazil happened early in 1533, but
not until after the development of the colony, at the end
of the sixteenth century, this crop gain importance for
the economic prosperity. The conversion of the forest in
croplands, mainly in the northeast, took on massive pro-
portions with sugarcane becoming the chief agricultural
product in Brazil during this period and ensured national
economic growth. In this way, the economic paradigm
of the colonial rule changed from the direct exploration
of forest products and minerals to agricultural produc-
tion. This also brought slave labour to Brazil, initiated
by European settlers. The African slaves performed hard
tasks inherent to the cultivation of this monoculture, and
the slave trade, at that time, generated high profits for
European slave traders and also, through taxes, for the
Portuguese crown. Pressure upon the forest therefore grew
with agricultural and social development of the colony.
The Brazilian economy was too dependent on sugarcane
 2   V. MARCILIO-SILVA AND M. C. M. MARQUES
exportation, but did not have direct access to the markets,
which were controlled by the Netherlands. In the second
half of the seventeenth century, sugarcane faced a decline
(Baer 2003). In this period, many sugarcane producing
regions began to diversify their production, introducing
crops such as tobacco and cocoa in Bahia, for example. The
cotton exportation, mainly produced in the Maranhão and
Grão-Paraná regions (Northeast), had a temporary growth
during the American civil war (1861–1865) due to the US
being the largest cotton exporter at the time (Baer 2003).
At the end of the colonial period, around 1730, coffee
was introduced into Brazil, but only after independence of
Brazil in 1822 was coffee production consolidated in the
southeast region, especially in the São Paulo state (Silva
1986). Coffee exportation, starting in the nineteenth cen-
tury, had an enormous economic impact, giving rise to a
new oligarchy in Brazil, the so-called Coffee Barons (Baer
2003; Silva 1986). At this time, large areas of the Atlantic
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Forest were already converted into agricultural and urban
areas, both in the northeast and southeast regions. With
the end of slavery in the nineteenth century, the demand
for labour in coffee production hastened immigrant
movements, especially Europeans, accentuated by coffee
production in the west of São Paulo (Arruda, 1981; Silva
1986). The coffee cycle lasted until the global economic
crisis of 1929, ending in the 1930s. The financial condition
provided by the coffee cycle thus allowed the country to
industrialise, helping the development of Brazilian society
but also bringing new threats to the Atlantic Forest biome.
Around the middle of the twentieth century, a debate
started in Brazil pointing to the delay in agricultural
development as an obstacle for the country’s industriali-
sation and it was believed that Brazilian agricultural pro-
duction could not support the needs of the urban areas
anymore. Cities like São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Recife
often suffered without basic supplies like sugar, wheat and
beans (Ortega and Nunes 2001). The use of technology in
agriculture was very rare and limited during that time in
Brazil. In academia two main ideas were debated, one pos-
iting that the country had a feudal structure, defended by
conservative intellectuals such as Oliveira Viana (historian
and sociologist), and the other, defended by intellectuals
such as Prado Junior (historian and politician), criticised
the capitalist structure. Both ideas preached an agrarian
reform as a way of improving the economic system and
suggested the need for changes in the Constitution to
reverse this situation. This produced a fierce opposition
on the part of the conservative wing of Brazilian society.
The economic and social instability in Brazil at that time
culminated in the 1964 Military Coup, referenced as the
1964 Revolution by the military (Ortega and Nunes 2001).
In 1973, during the military regime in Brazil, the
EMBRAPA (Brazilian Agricultural Research Company)
was created, with the aim of diversifying the country’s
agricultural production. This governmental company
was responsible for the development of new cultures that
adapted to the peculiar conditions of the different regions
of the country. Soon after began the expansion of the agri-
cultural frontiers in the country, with agricultural estates
producing monocultures, like soy, cotton and beans, on a
semi-industrial scale. Agricultural development policies
included subsidised credits, forgiveness of bank debts and
export subsidies amounting to 50% of the value of the
product. Another paradigm shift occurred in Brazil, this
time relating to the perception around diversification of
cultures and the mechanisation of the agricultural work
being done in the field. Thus, between 1960 and 1990 there
was a great advance in Brazilian agriculture: the number
of exported agricultural products increased from four to
nineteen, and the processed agricultural products, that
represented 16% of the total exportation, came to repre-
sent 80% (Baer 2003).
After the end of the military regime and with democ-
ratisation, coupled with financial stabilisation generated
by the Real Plan in 1994, the Brazilian agricultural model
underwent great changes. The state reduced its regulation
and the market started to finance agriculture, strength-
ening the entire agribusiness chain. The replacement of
labour by machines reduced the Brazilian rural popula-
tion from 21.7 million in 1985 to 17 million in 1995, and
increased the number of tractors in the country, from
665,000 to 803,000 in the same period (IBGE 2006). These
trends in the Brazilian agriculture continued at the begin-
ning of the twenty-first century. In 2006, Brazil had 60.6
million hectares of croplands, between temporary and
permanent crops, and a fleet of 820,000 tractors (IBGE
2006).
The result of all these economic cycles which Brazil
endured caused almost total conversion of the Atlantic
Forest (SOS Mata Atlântica & INPE, 2017). Even with
different pressures on the native vegetation, each of these
cycles contributed to the acute anthropisation of this
biome guided by the needs of the country at each period
(Table 1). Despite deforestation rates having been reduced
in recent decades (Dias et al. 2016), the devastation and
fragmentation of the Atlantic Forest has never stopped
and began to increase again in the 2015–2016 period (SOS
Mata Atlântica & INPE, 2017).
The need for sustainable agricultural practices
Despite this history of increased agricultural economy,
Brazil is still considered a country with a high capacity
to increase its agricultural productivity (Dias et al. 2016),
because of its favourable climate and vast areas with great
potential for agriculture. The history of agriculture in the
 BIODIVERSITY   3

country reveals patterns of continuous conversion of all

develop the country’s economy. Delay

the Brazilian biomes in the last decades (Dias et al. 2016;

Need to supply the domestic demand

Need for economic development and

Global and regional need for sustain-

Lack of direct market access and the

able development of agriculture

Lapola et al. 2014). Specifically the Atlantic Forest region

for agricultural products and to

Factors of change
that is home of the majority of the Brazilian population,

Opportunity for innovation

international competition

of the agricultural sector

settlement of the colony
has around 90% of its area converted mainly into agricul-
tural areas (Metzger 2009; SOS Mata Atlântica & INPE,
Table 1. Different historical economic cycles in Brazil, their effects on the Atlantic Forest and some factors that have contributed to the change of the paradigm in each era.

modernisation
2017). The economic importance of the agricultural areas
and their production is evidenced by the fact that Brazil is
among the top ten global exporters of agricultural prod-
ucts (FAO 2012), with the agricultural sector accounting
for 25% of gross domestic product (GDP) in the last two
Atlantic Forest and greater expansion
Brazilian Atlantic Coast; Ombrophilous

All Brazil; consolidation of agricultural

decades (Lapola et al. 2014).

Paraná (terras roxas); Ombrophilous
Dense Forest, Ombrophilous Mixed
Bahia); Ombrophilous Dense Fore-

Southeast and South: São Paulo and

Rio de Janeiro (Paraíba Valley) and

over the Cerrado and the Amazon

Northeast (mainly Pernambuco and

and urban areas throughout the

With the increase in the world population and per

capita calorie consumption, there are estimates that food
Forestand Seasonal Forest
Main region

production needs to double in the next 35 years to ensure

stand Seasonal Forest

security in the global food supply (Tilman et al. 2011). In

this scenario, intensification of agricultural production in
Dense Forest

Brazil, including in the Atlantic Forest region is inevita-

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ble. Although the link between agricultural expansion and

deforestation continues strong, it has started to weaken
(Lapola et al. 2014). For example, Brazilian grain pro-
duction has doubled since 2005 even with the reduction
Conversion of natural areas in agricul-

Conversion of natural areas in agricul-

Pressure on the Atlantic Forest

agricultural and consolidation and

of deforestation in Brazil at the same period (Dias et al.

2016). One of the main strategies proposed to ensure the
Conversion of natural areas in

expansion of urban areas

overall safety of food production is sustainable intensifi-

tural and urban areas

tural and urban areas

cation of agriculture (Lapola et al. 2014; Rudel et al. 2009;

Selective logging

Strassburg et al. 2014). This strategy is aimed at increas-

ing agricultural production without increasing areas for
agriculture or environmental degradation. Strassburg et
al. (2014) demonstrated that Brazil has the potential to
increase livestock productivity by allowing the conversion
of grazing lands into agricultural lands, enabling a sustain-
End of the Military Regime and begin-
Situation of Brazil at the time

able agricultural production by 2040. Brazilian agriculture

is historically extensive (i.e. agriculture practiced in large
Independence and first reign

ning of the New Republic

tracts of land, usually with low investments in technol-

ogy and no specialisation, presenting low productivity per
Colony of Portugal

Colony of Portugal

area) with expansion of agricultural areas at the expense

of natural vegetation. However, data from 2016 indicate a
decrease in the extensive practices and an increase in the
intensification (i.e. agricultural practices that use technol-
ogy, mechanisation and labour specialisation, with high
productivity per area) of the agriculture in the country
Start period
Early XVI century

Early XIX century

(Dias et al. 2016). Even though it is still not very expres-

Late XX century
Late XI century

sive (compared to the national scenario), intensification

of livestock and agriculture in Brazil is already a reality
and the country is above global averages in this respect
(FAO 2012; Lapola et al. 2014).
Extraction of pau-brasil1,2,4,6

Diversification of crops and

To ensure a future that combines food security and

agricultural mechanisa-

Ortega and Nunes 2001.

Arruda and Piletti 1996.

protection of nature, the expansion of agricultural areas

Prado Junior 2006.

Lapola et al. 2014.

in Brazil needs to stop altogether (West et al. 2014). Some

Economic cycle

Holanda 1995.
Sugarcane2,4,5,6

Arruda, 1981.

peculiarities of Brazil (i.e. the climate and soil are favour-

tion1,4,5,6,7

Baer 2003.
Coffee1,3,4,5

able to a diversity of crops, regulation of the internal

market, control of illegal deforestation, among others)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
 4   V. MARCILIO-SILVA AND M. C. M. MARQUES
Table 2. Studies indicating possible sustainable agricultural practices for Brazil and the Atlantic Forest, and the main challenges inherent
to their applications.
Actual land use practices The way to sustainability
Extensive and low Adoption of ‘agricultural-livestock-
diverse agricultural forestry’ integrated systems
systems
Extensive livestock Sustainable intensification of
farming livestock and conversion of part of
pasture areas in agricultural areas
Sugarcane production Decrease of greenhouse gas emis-
sions in the sugarcane production
Extensive agriculture Implementation of agroforestry sys-
tems, identification of native spe-
cies with non-wood use potential
Extensive livestock Sustainable intensification of
farming livestock production, increase of
beekeeping and rural tourism
Extensive agriculture Sustainable intensification of the
agriculture
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place it in a unique position for the intensification of its
agricultural production without increasing deforestation
(Lapola et al. 2014; Phalan et al. 2016). It is one of the few
countries on the planet with a chance of achieving both
the protection of its biodiversity hotspots and high agri-
cultural productivity (Alves-Pinto et al. 2017; Martinelli
et al. 2010), indicating the country’s great potential for a
sustainable development.
It is necessary to change the common thinking that
higher productivity means simply greater food produc-
tion, but rather that intensification in the already estab-
lished agricultural areas allows other areas to be devoted
to biodiversity conservation (Phalan et al. 2016). This
sustainable vision brings a new paradigm for land use in
tropical countries that are highly dependent on agriculture
but still have large fractions of global biodiversity in their
forests (Lapola et al. 2014). Reaching this sustainable inten-
sification in Brazil will be a huge political, technological
and social challenge (Alves-Pinto et al. 2017; Lapola et al.
2014; Phalan et al. 2016; Strassburg et al. 2014). In order
to achieve the sustainability, not only the application of
techniques already developed in other countries and/or
experimentally in Brazil itself (Table 2) are necessary, but
a change in the view of agriculture itself by the producers
and Brazilian society at large. The role of decision-makers is
crucial to this end, from the design and enforcement of laws
protecting the forest remnants, to agencies that subsidise
experimentation and the application of sustainable agri-
cultural practices to the country’s educational guidelines.
Conclusion
Each year, the high biodiversity of the Atlantic Forest is
depleted. The human-related pressures on this biome are
immense and its conservation is of utmost importance.
Challenges Region Source
Large-scale application of the knowledge Brazil Bungestab 2012
developed in experimental farms
Planning in the land allocation, improve- Brazil Strassburg et al. 2014
ment in the law enforcement, land tenure
monitoring and assurance
Prevention of soil degradation and erosion, Atlantic Forest Filoso et al. 2015
protection of the river basins and eradica-
tion of the expansion over forest remnants
Improvement in the law enforcement, local Atlantic Forest Oliveira and Carvalhaes
availability and market opportunities for 2016
non-timber products
Improvements in the labour quality and Atlantic Forest Alves-Pinto et al. 2017
availability, increase in the technical
assistance and reduction of the cultural
resistance
Planning in the land allocation, increase the Atlantic Forest Marcilio-Silva et al., in
technical assistance and reduction of the prep
cultural resistance
Since first contact, man has exploited the wealth of these
forests and since then a large proportion of Brazil’s econ-
omy is dependent on the Atlantic Forest. The current
Brazilian agricultural model needs to move forward and
towards sustainability. Fortunately, the country has favour-
able conditions to this goal and the use of cutting-edge
technologies should help achieve it: of increasing both agri-
cultural productivity and nature conservation in tandem.
Acknowledgements
We are thankful to R. Ferreira dos Santos, D. Neves, F. Melo
and V. Reid for their comments and contribution to the final
version of the manuscript. We also thank the Brazilian Educa-
tion Council (CAPES) for the scholarship to V.M.S. and Bra-
zilian Research Council (CNPq) for the grants for M.C.M.M
(grants 304650/2012-9 and 229349-2013-7).
Funding
This work was supported by Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvi-
mento Cientifico e Tecnoligico [grant number 304650/2012-9,
grant number 229349-2013-7].
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