PE fund creates startup accelerator for agtechs

The private equity fund CVCIB Holdings will create a startup accelerator focused on agtechs, or agricultural technology firms. The hub is being installed within UISA’s industrial park (former Usinas Itamarati) in Nova Olímpia, Mato Grosso. The plan is to set up a new center for the promotion of technological innovations and business focused on the state’s interior. The new hub, T4Agro, will operate on three fronts. It will work as an incubator for incipient technology startups aimed at the sugar-and-ethanol sector and others, will be an accelerator of agtechs with more mature solutions and will develop innovations already in gestation within UISA.

Source: Valor International

https://www.valor.com.br/international/briefs

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Insurance for small farmers gains traction

More Brazilian small farmers are buying insurance to cover for possible crop losses. This is happening thanks to a pilot project that the Ministry of Agriculture implemented to encourage the contracting of private insurance subsidized by the government under the National Program for Strengthening Family Farming (Pronaf). R$50 million were made available for this purpose from the program’s budget of R$881 million, and more than R$32 million were disbursed from July to October to insure crops of soybeans, summer corn, grapes and apples. Nine thousand farmers beneficiaries of Pronaf bought the agricultural insurance, 90% from the three states in the south of the country.

Source: Valor International

https://www.valor.com.br/international/briefs

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Coffee exports had record volume in October

Brazil exported 4.1 million  60-kilo bags of coffee in October, an increase of 11.5% compared to the same month in 2019. The volume was a record from October and the best monthly performance this year. Revenues grew 8.5% to $510 million but the average price per bag dropped 2.7%, according to exporters’ trade group Cecafé. Total exports from January to October reached 35 million bags, an increase of 1.9% compared to the same period in 2019.

Source: Valor International

https://www.valor.com.br/international/briefs

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Unilever chooses Brazil to launch brand of products for pets

Consumer goods maker Unilever chose Brazil to launch its first line of products for dogs and cats. The brand named Cafuné will have items geared towards pet hygiene and home care. “The creation of a 100% Brazilian brand to enter a new market is an unprecedented and strategic move for Unilever in the world,” said the company in a statement. According to the multinational, the country has the second-largest population of dogs and cats and is the second-largest market for pet products in the world after reaching R$35.4 billion in 2019, according to the Pet Institute. According to a study by Fundação Getúlio Vargas cited by the company, Brazil should have about 101 million dogs and cats by 2030. Today there are approximately 75 million.

Source: Valor International

https://www.valor.com.br/international/briefs

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Santander diversifies consumer credit

Santander is expanding the scope of its financial business, now very focused on car finance, driven by low interest rates and the digitalization of the economy. The objective is to finance products and services ranging from construction materials to dental treatments through partnerships with retailers and other companies. By offering services in stores, Santander plans to reach non-clients and even people who do not have a credit card. “The consumer market is going to grow a lot in Brazil, and the conditions to extend credit in a low interest rate scenario are fantastic,” says Marcio Giovaninni, executive head of Santander Financiamentos. At the end of September, Santander’s credit outstanding amounted to R$58 billion, of which 90% was car finance.

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Ibovespa’s market cap rises R$390bn in November

Ibovespa companies have increased market capitalization by R$389,3 billion this month in only six trading sessions, a survey by Valor Data shows. The increase — to R$3.72 trillion Tuesday from R$3.33 trillion on October 30 — has been pushed by the better risk perception after Joe Biden’s victory in the US and positive results of coronavirus vaccines’ trials. Petrobras saw the greatest jump, of R$57 billion, helped by high international prices of oil. Banks’ market capitalization also rose substantially — a combined R$114.1 billion.

Source: Valor International

https://www.valor.com.br/international/briefs

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With high demand, rental car companies slow down sales of used fleet

Brazilian car rental companies started to hold back sales of used cars to be able to deal with bottlenecks in the delivery of new cars. Automakers are taking from 90 to 180 days to deliver new vehicles. This occurs as the demand for car rental grows because of the pandemic and people’s decision to avoid public transportation or travel by car instead of plane. The occupancy rate of the rental car fleet at around 80%. “On Every New Year’s Eve there are not cars [to rent], but nowadays every weekend is New Year’s Eve,” says Movida’s CEO, Renato Franklin.

Source: Valor International

https://www.valor.com.br/international/briefs

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Brazil wins dispute about chicken exports to Indonesia at WTO

Brazil won at the World Trade Organization (WTO) on Tuesday another dispute against import barriers on chicken meat imposed by Indonesia. In 2017, the organization had already determined that Indonesia should take action to open its market to chicken produced in Brazil, including by accepting the international health certificate. The request was ignored by Jakarta. “Indonesia is an important market, with more than 250 million people, mostly Muslims, and with an increasing consumption per capita. As a major producer and exporter, Brazil remains open to collaborating with food security in this important market, complementing local production. We hope that Indonesia will fulfill its obligations as a WTO member country,” said Ricardo Santin, president of the Brazilian Animal Protein Association (ABPA), in a note.

Source: Valor International

https://www.valor.com.br/international/briefs

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A constellation of nanosatellites will help Brazilian farmers

A 100% national initiative aims to create a constellation of nanosatellites in Earth’s orbit and offer services to disseminate and democratize in Brazil precision agriculture, which is still expensive for a considerable number of farmers. Visiona, a joint venture between Telebrás and Embraer, intends to deliver options to at a lower cost and greater efficiency than the technologies currently available. The main applications will be monitoring and evaluation of areas by images and the collection of data from climate and pest field sensors. The nanosatellite is the size of a shoe box, weighs 12 kg and is capable of circling the Earth 16 times a day on a flight 600 km from the ground. “It’s a comet, small and with a lot of built-in capacity”, says João Paulo Campos, Visiona’s CEO.

Source: Valor International

https://www.valor.com.br/international/briefs

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