Easy Pedology - AMBICANA

“AMBICANA” – a Project of the Sugarcane Research Center of Ribeirão Preto, Instituto Agronômico (IAC/APTA), Secretary of Agriculture, State of São Paulo, Brazil.

The AMBICANA project objective (qualifying sugarcane production environments) is to give soil classification training to technicians of the sucro-alcohol factories, on chosen pilot-areas of farms. On these areas, several variables are considered such as sugarcane productivity variation, soil color and clay content. Once trained, technicians extend the work done on pilot-areas to the entire sugarcane producing areas, increasing the number of observations per unity area according to the necessity.

The AMBICANA project, during its work routine, stimulates the technician training on clay content estimation based on the moist soil viscosity tactile sense. This procedure has two important practical consequences: (1) clay content is evaluated directly in the field, what is essential for soil classification, although part of the soil samples are evaluated in the laboratory for particle size, for each soil class, to fulfill the pedologic report; but most samples are submitted to clay content estimation in the field; and (2) savings on laboratory particle size analysis.

In a 60,000 ha farm-factory, about 3,000 soil observations are done and 9,000 soil samples are collected (one sample per each 20 ha and three soil depth samplings). If all soil samples would be sent to laboratory for particle size analysis, the analysis cost would be around US$ 60,000.00. Supposing that soil clay content might be estimated in 30% of soil samples and only 70% of lab analysis done, there would be a US$ 18,000.00 saving.

Figure 1 clearly shows the correlation between the clay content estimates by moist soil sample tactile sense and the particle size analysis by the pipette method. This correlation was tested in several factories with contract for the AMBICANA project, among them, the Vale do Rosário factory, at Morro Agudo, State of São Paulo, Brazil.

Figura 1.Correlação entre o teor de argila obtido pela análise de laboratório e a argila estimada no campo pelos técnicos da usina Vale do Rosário. (Fonte: Usina Vale do Rosário).

Figure 1. Correlation between the moist soil sample clay contents obtained through laboratory analysis and tactile sense estimation in the field by technicians of Vale do Rosário Factory.
(Source: Vale do Rosário Factory).

AMBICANA NEWS

Doctorate Thesis title: "Evaluation of capabilities and spinoffs generated by R&D programs: The IAC sugarcane program, DPCT – IG – UNICAMP"

In Mirian Hasegawa’s doctorate thesis (title above) qualified in the University of Campinas, State of São Paulo, Brazil, the economic impacts generated by the AMBICANA services in the sucro-alcohol factories was quantified:

"The knowledge transferred to the farm-factories during their participation in the AMBICANA program and its application in their production decisions have brought about important economic results (cost reduction and productivity increase) to the factories. During technician training, the pedologist teachs how to recognize soils and relate the sugarcane variety performance with each soil type and how to adopt the best management for each soil-variety combination. Such training lead to more rational and efficient managements, what has caused productivity increases (t ha^-1) and production cost reductions. These economic results will be larger or smaller depending on the utilization degree by the Factory and the amount of knowledge given by the AMBICANA program. That is, the economic impact magnitude created by the AMBICANA program will depend on the factory efforts applied to:
Absorb the knowledge transferred during the training period given by the pedologist;

Absorb the transferred knowledge during the technician training given by the pedologist;
Divulge and socialize the absorbed knowledge within the farm-factory;
Incorporate the know-how to the production routines and decision takes.

The main economic impact created by the AMBICANA program in the factories, quantified in this work, is the sugarcane productivity increase and the production cost reduction due to the correct allocation and rational management of sugarcane varieties in the production environment.

These factors represent important profit increments in the farm-factories.
AMBICANA project impact on the sugarcane productivity and production costs of fifteen farm-factories during five cropping-years (in the mapped area until October, 2004) reached the mark of US$ 152, 64 millions (R$ 259048730.00) (Hasegawa, 2005).

Figure 2 illustrates one of the conclusions referred to the sucro-alcohol factory profits with and without contract for the AMBICANA project:

Figure 2. AMBICANA profit for sugar cane mills.

Project impacts in the farm-factories are:

Increase on productivity and sugarcane longevity through the correct variety allocation;
Effective reduction on production operational costs using adequate soil-variety management;
Divulgation of pedologic know-how within the farm-factory in order to incorporate them during their decision takes and production routines;
Possibility of selection of the most favorable soils in future land incorporations or acquisitions;
Cost reduction with laboratory soil particle size analysis due to the skilled technician estimation of moist soil clay content by tactile sense, what consequently reduces the number of required soil sample analysis.

Brazilian Sucro-Alcohol Farm-factories with AMBICANA contract

Usinas Debrasa de Brasilândia (MS)
Benálcool de Bento de Abreu (SP)
Cerradinho de Catanduva (SP)
Vale do Rosário de Morro Agudo (SP)
São João de Araras (SP)
Santa Luiza de Mombuca (SP)
Ferrari de Porto Ferreira (SP)
São Martinho de Pradópolis (SP)
Alto Alegre de Presidente Prudente (SP)
Alto Alegre de Colorado (SP)
Itaiquara de Passos (MG)
Usina Jalles Machado de Goianésia (GO)
Fazendas Húmus Agroterra de Pitangueiras (SP)
Grupo Rizzo de Cravinhos (SP)
Usina Moema de Orindiúva (SP)
Usina Alvorada de Araporâ (MG)

AMBICANA Seminary

The II AMBICANA Seminary was promoted by the Sugarcane Research Center of Instituto Agronômico (IAC) and occurred in November 20th, 2007 in the Stream Palace Hotel, at Ribeirão Preto (SP). The AMBICANA is a Research Program of Instituto Agronômico, applied to sucro-alcohol farm-factories, and which main objectives are to classify the sugarcane production environments, give specific training support and select effective staff within the farm-factories as well as to provide parameters for variety management according to the environment.

This event provided an overall contextual view of this important work and oriented its utilization as a strategic decision tool for sugarcane enterprises. Several reports have indicated that each soil requires a peculiar management in order to optimize productivity. Also that, the know-how is fundamental for the correct allocation of sugarcane varieties. The sugarcane breeding program of Instituto Agronômico has used the project results to establish more effective strategies for regional variety selection. The event was positively evaluated by the presents, and in the future it will be probably biannual.