36

Dezembro, 2006
Passo Fundo, RS

Abstract

The technological and economic transformations in Brazil, over the last thirty years, resulted in changes in wheat geographical distribution and production level. The objective of this paper was to analyze the dynamics of wheat production in Brazil, regarding its geographical distribution, in the period of 1975 to 2003, through the use of descriptive statistics (asymmetry, concentration), distance measures, gravity centers and maps, based on the years 1975, 1985, 1995 and 2003. Along this period, 20 to 27 micro regions represented 75% of harvested area and produced quantity of wheat. During that period, a substantial number of micro regions showed some record of wheat cultivation; nevertheless, the persistence of micro regions that, in a minimum number, were sufficient to reach 25%, 50% or 75% of harvested area or produced quantity was low, showing an increase or decrease of crop importance within each micro region, which reflects into the spatial dynamics as shown by distance measures and maps. The global gravity center of wheat production moved from the north-western region of Rio Grande do Sul State to the western region of Paraná State and, afterwards, to the center-south of this state. There was a clear trend of increse in wheat yield from 1975 to 2003.


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