Financial losses in pork supply chain: a study of the pre-slaughter handling impacts

Brazil is amongst the world’s largest swine producers. However, its competitiveness has been vulnerable due to a lack of cooperation between the supply chain players. This condition makes the financial losses to be evaluated taking into account only an individual node, and most of the time, these damages are imputed by swine breeders. Living weight losses occur between the farm to slaughterhouses, and the main cause of these losses is the pre-slaughter handling, especially during animal transportation. In this research, we analyzed the pre-slaughter handling in a swine farm in Brasilândia, MS, Brazil. Analyzed data were provided by five slaughterhouses (farm clients) from the studied region, in which it was considered living weight losses, carcass bruising, animal injury, and death rate. The results indicated that total financial losses represent 160 thousand dollars per year, when taking into account the supply chain management.

Torque teno sus virus (TTSuV) infection at different stages of pig production cycle

Torque teno sus virus (TTSuV) infection is present in pig herds worldwide. It has been demonstrated that TTSuV might increase the severity of other important viral diseases with economic and public health impacts. At present, there is no information on the age distribution of pigs infected with TTSuV in Brazilian herds. This study evaluated the frequency of TTSuV infection in pigs at different stages of production. Fecal samples (n=190) from pigs at 1 to 24 weeks of age and from breeders at 6 farrow-to-weaning (up to 8 weeks of age) and 9 grower-to-finish (9 weeks of age onwards) farms in the western region of Paraná state, Brazil, were evaluated by PCR. Fragments of the 5' UTRs of TTSuV1 and/or TTSuVk2 DNAs were identified in 126 (66.3%) of the fecal samples. Significant differences were found with the percentages of positive samples for TTSuV1, TTSuVk2, and mixed infections by both genera between and within the different pig production stages. Fecal samples from the grower-to-finish farms had TTSuV detection rates (90.1%; 64/71) that were significantly (p<0.05) higher than those from the farrow-to-weaning farms (52.1%; 62/119). TTSuV detection was significantly (p<0.05) more frequent in finisher pigs than in the animals from the other stages. The UTR nucleotide sequences in this study presented higher similarities to strains from Norway (96%, TTSuV1), and Argentina and China (97.1%, TTSuVk2). These results suggest that TTSuV infection has spread to pigs of all production stages and that the viral infection rate increases with the age of the animals. In the western region of Paraná state, Brazil, TTSuV1 and TTSuVk2-induced infections were more frequently observed in suckling piglets and finisher pigs, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis pointed out the possibility of different strains of TTSuV1 and TTSuVk2 circulating in pig herds of Brazil.

Impacts of the Belo Monte hydroelectric dam construction on pioneer vegetation formations along the Xingu River, Pará State, Brazil

There is an important pioneer vegetation formation along the Xingu River in the area where the Belo Monte hydroelectric dam is being constructed that is highly adapted to a seasonally fluctuating water levels. The aim of this study was to examine the habitat and flora of the pioneer formations in the Belo Monte area. The area was divided in three sections for study purposes (Reservoir, Low Flow, and Control) that were expected to experience different degrees of impact from the dam project. The calculations of habitat losses were based on satellite imagery classifications, and a total of 111 plots were established in the three areas for vegetation sampling. Habitat losses of the pioneer formations will total 89.7% when the project is fully functional. Forty-five of the 72 recorded species are restricted to single areas. Species richness and diversity were significantly lower in the control area. The completion of the Belo Monte reservoir will result in habitat reductions and will consequently reduce the richness and diversity of pioneer formations. Studies suggest monitoring the populations located in the reduced flow area to determine possible impacts resulting from changes in the regional hydrological cycle caused by the Xingu River dam.

Oxidative stability of cereal bars made with fruit peels and baru nuts packaged in different types of packaging

Food industries have been concerned about managing the waste generated by their production processes in order to minimize environmental impacts and also about the development of formulations with different and innovative ingredients such as fruits from the Brazilian savanna. Seeking to meet the expectations of consumers who desire healthy and practical products, this study aimed to evaluate the oxidative stability and the variations in chemical composition and antioxidant potential of cereal bars made with fruit peels and baru nuts packaged in different types of packaging. The bars formulated were packed in four different types of packaging: laminated without vacuum (LWV), transparent without vacuum (TWV), transparent under vacuum (TV), and laminated under vacuum (LV); they were subsequently analyzed for proximate composition, fatty acid profiles, antioxidant activity, and oxidative capacity. The results showed that the cereal bars made with fruit peel and baru are sources of protein, dietary fiber, and fat, especially unsaturated fatty acids such as oleic and linoleic acids. The cereal bars exhibited oxidative stability up to 120 days of storage, and the type of packaging was not significant for the variables evaluated; therefore, they can be stored in low cost packaging such as transparent packaging without vacuum for a period of 120 days.

Assessing environmental impacts using a comparative LCA of industrial and artisanal production processes: "Minas Cheese" case

This study uses the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology to evaluate and compare the environmental impacts caused by both the artisanal and the industrial manufacturing processes of "Minas cheese". This is a traditional cheese produced in the state of Minas Gerais (Brazil), and it is considered a "cultural patrimony" in the country. The high participation of artisanal producers in the market justifies this research, and this analysis can help the identification of opportunities to improve the environmental performance of several stages of the production system. The environmental impacts caused were also assessed and compared. The functional unit adopted was 1 kilogram (Kg) of cheese. The system boundaries considered were the production process, conservation of product (before sale), and transport to consumer market. The milk production process was considered similar in both cases, and therefore it was not included in the assessment. The data were collected through interviews with the producers, observation, and a literature review; they were ordered and processed using the SimaPro 7 LCA software. According to the impact categories analyzed, the artisanal production exerted lower environmental impacts. This can be justified mainly because the industrial process includes the pasteurization stage, which uses dry wood as an energy source and refrigeration.

Avaliando os impactos microeconômicos das fusões e aquisições nas indústrias de energia no mundo: uma análise para a década de 90

Microeconomic impacts of the mergers and acquisitions of energy industries in the World: an analysis for the 1990's. The energy industries have witnessed a significant growth of global mergers and acquisitions (M&A´s) process in the 1990´s. According to Unctad statistics, the total amount of global M&A deals (domestic and cross borders) on the electric, oil and gas sectors has recorded US$ 329 billions on the 1990-1999 period. The present paper sheds light on M&A process occurred on the energy industries during this period and, based on a sample of 248 transactions carried out by 18 big energy enterprises, develops an empirical microeconomic analysis about the impacts of these transactions over the performance of the firms involved. Overall, the results show significant improvements on the firms' performance after M&A operations, regarding the following variables: sales, net profits, assets, dividends, and, to a less extent, the ratio (net profits/sales).

"School accountability" no Brasil: experiências e dificuldades

This paper analyses the most important experiences with school accountability policy (SA) in Brazil. The analysis suggests that their impacts on the quality of education are not significant due to the fact that: (i) either it does not incorporate a system in which the school is responsible for the students’ performance; (ii) or the incentive schemes are not appropriately designed. Finally, it discusses the main barriers to the adoption of an efficient SA at the national level in Brazil.

Trade rules and exchange rate misalignments: in search for a WTO solution

The debate on the link between trade rules and rules on exchange rates is raising the attention of experts on international trade law and economics. The main purpose of this paper is to analyze the impacts of exchange rate misalignments on tariffs as applied by the WTO - World Trade Organization. It is divided into five sections: the first one explains the methodology used to determine exchange rate misalignments and also presents its results for Brazil, U.S. and China; the second summarizes the methodology applied to calculate the impacts of exchange rate misalignments on the level of tariff protection through an exercise of "misalignment tariffication"; the third examines the effects of exchange rate variations on tariffs and their consequences for the multilateral trading system; the fourth one creates a methodology to estimate exchange rates against a currency of the World and a proposal to deal with persistent and significant misalignments related to trade rules. The conclusions are present in the last section.