The receiving capacity of the Campo Limpo System keeps up with the growth pace of agriculture
Agribusiness has a fundamental role in the economic development of Brazil and in its projection in the global productive scenario. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the sector grew around 4% in 2014, according to the Brazilian Confederation of Agriculture and Cattle (CNA), a movement almost ten times greater than the growth projected by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the Brazilian economy as a whole.
Continued productivity growth in the field over the last years has a direct effect on the Sistema Campo Limpo (SCL [Clean Field System]) and on reverse logistics of post-consumption crop protection packaging material. Our challenge is to follow the pace of agriculture so that the System absorbs the increase in recipient volume delivered to the receiving units.
This is what we did in 2014, a special year for inpEV and SCL for various reasons, starting with the fact that we exceeded 300,000 tons of post-consumption crop protection packages since the start of the System's operations in 2002. Our outreach and productivity have increased year after year as a result of the careful planning and application of daily learning on improving the management and infrastructure systems of our operations.
This would not have been possible without the continuous development of ideas and solutions that take into consideration the specific aspects of different regions and the evolution of the market. In 2014, we implemented the Scheduled Return of Empty Packages (adEV - Agendamento de Devolução de Embalagens Vazias).
Besides this being another option for producers to return these packages, adEV allows for gains in transportation efficiency and provides important information for logistical planning of the entire System.
In processes and information management, the adoption of the Logistics System (SisLog) was an important step that allowed for better management of shipping values practiced by inpEV, resulting in savings to the industry. In operations, the main highlights were the systematization and expansion of itinerant collection in order to take the benefits of reverse logistics to small farmers in areas that do not count with a consolidated distribution chain. We also kept our focus on safety: we intensified our actions on the topic and continued qualifying our managers at the receiving central stations.
The relationship with the community was another high point in 2014, with the 10th yearly celebration of the National Clean Field Day (DNCL - Dia Nacional do Campo Limpo), an initiative that mobilizes the different System links and society. On social networks, we intensified the dialog with people from all over Brazil, thus increasing SCL's visibility.
Regarding sector policies, the milestone was the change in legislation which will allow the System to also manage the environmentally correct disposal of improper products, a demand generated by the National Policy of Solid Waste (PNRS).
The continuous investment in improving management done over the last years will allow us to continue to advance always focusing on increasing the efficiency of our operations and heading closer towards economic self-sufficiency.
João Cesar M. Rando
Chief Executive Officer