The Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa - pt, Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária) is a state-owned

research Research is "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...

corporation affiliated with the Brazilian

Ministry of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister ...

. Since its inception on April 26, 1973, it has been devoted to developing technologies, knowledge and technical-scientific information aimed at Brazilian

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...

, including

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to ani ...

.Brazilian scientists turning nation into an agro-power
''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...

'', October 16, 2010 Their mission is to ''"develop research, development and innovation solutions for the sustainability of agriculture, for the benefit of Brazilian society".'' Embrapa's organizational structure is composed of 46 centers that can be divided into Research Units or Service Units, and of 17 Central Units that comprise the corporation's headquarters. Such research centers are distributed throughout the country in nearly all Brazilian states. The corporation currently employs over 9,790 people, of which 2,444 are researchers. Embrapa is part of the National Agricultural Research System (SNPA - ''Sistema Nacional de Pesquisa Agropecuária''), which also comprises federal and state public institutions, universities, private companies, and foundations, which cooperate to conduct research in different geographical areas and fields of knowledge.

International cooperation

In terms of international cooperation, Embrapa has bilateral agreements for technical cooperation with a number of countries and institutions, and multilateral agreements with international organizations, especially concerning joint research activities. It also has established their Labex (''Laboratórios Virtuais no Exterior'' or Virtual Laboratories Abroad) to develop research and prospect trends in the United States, France, United Kingdom, Netherlands and South Korea. There is an office in

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...

to disseminate scientific and technological knowledge in African countries, with plans for future offices in

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

aimed at

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

Embrapa Research Units

Product-based research centers

Embrapa Units whose work targets national or regional agricultural product chains. * Embrapa Beef Cattle,

Campo Grande Campo Grande (, ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul in the Center-West region of the country. The city is nicknamed ''Cidade Morena'' ("Swarthy City" in Portuguese) because of the reddish-brown colour o ...

, MS. Research and development for the

beef cattle Beef cattle are cattle raised for meat production (as distinguished from dairy cattle, used for milk production). The meat of mature or almost mature cattle is mostly known as beef. In beef production there are three main stages: cow-calf opera ...

production chain. * Embrapa Cassava & Tropical Fruits, Cruz das Almas, BA. Research and development for

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively cultivated ...

and tropical fruit production chains. * Embrapa Cotton,

Campina Grande Campina Grande is the second most populous Brazilian city in the State of Paraíba after João Pessoa, the capital. It is considered to be the most important city of the Northeastern Brazilian subregion called ''agreste''. It is considered one ...

, PB. Research on cotton, castor oil plant, peanuts, sesame, and sisal. * Embrapa Dairy Cattle,

Juiz de Fora Juiz de Fora (, '' Outsider Judge''), also known as J.F., is a city in the southeastern Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, approximately from the state border with Rio de Janeiro. According to 2020 estimates the current population is about 57 ...

, MG. Research and development for the milk and dairy production chain. * Embrapa Fisheries and Aquaculture, Palmas, TO. * Embrapa Forestry,

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

, PR. Research and development on cultivated and natural forests. * Embrapa Goats and Sheep, Sobral, CE. Research and development on goats and sheep. * Embrapa Grape & Wine, Bento Gonçalves, RS. Research on grapes, wine, apples, and other subtropical fruit. * Embrapa Maize & Sorghum,

Sete Lagoas Sete Lagoas (meaning 'Seven Lagoons' in Portuguese) is a city in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. The municipal area is 537;km² while the population was 241,835 in 2020. Location Sete Lagoas is situated about 70 kilometres from Belo Horizo ...

, MG. Research and development for the production chains of

maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American English, North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous ...

sorghum ''Sorghum'' () is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for human consumption and some in pastures for animals. One species is grown for grain, while many other ...

, and other tropical cereals. * Embrapa Rice and Beans,

Santo Antônio de Goiás Santo Antônio de Goiás is a municipality in central Goiás state, Brazil, located just north of the state capital, Goiânia. *Distance from Goiânia: 42 km. with connections by way of GO-462. Location Neighboring municipalities are: *no ...

, GO. Research and development for rice and bean production chains. * Embrapa Soybean,

Londrina Londrina (, literally "Little London") is a city located in the north of the state of Paraná, South Region, Brazil, and is away from the state capital, Curitiba. It is the second largest city in the state and fourth largest in the southern regi ...

, PR. Research and development on soybean, sunflowers and wheat. * Embrapa Swine & Poultry,

Concórdia Concórdia is a city in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. It was founded by colonizers of the State of Rio Grande do Sul, basically descendants of Italians and Germans, who immigrated to Brazil in the 19th century. It is located 480 km west o ...

, SC. Research and development for the swine and poultry production chains. * Embrapa Vegetables, Distrito Federal, DF. Research and development for vegetable production chains. * Embrapa Wheat,

Passo Fundo Passo Fundo is a municipality in the north of the southern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. It is named after its river. It's the twelfth largest city in the state with an estimated population of 204,722 inhabitants living in a total munici ...

, RS. Research on wheat,

triticale Triticale (; × ''Triticosecale'') is a hybrid of wheat (''Triticum'') and rye (''Secale'') first bred in laboratories during the late 19th century in Scotland and Germany. Commercially available triticale is almost always a second-generation ...

, barley, rye, oats and soybeans.

Basic theme research centers

Embrapa units that work on basic themes that cut across several production chains, and support the other research centers. * Embrapa Agriculture Informatics,

Campinas Campinas (, ''Plains'' or ''Meadows'') is a Brazilian municipality in São Paulo State, part of the country's Southeast Region. According to the 2020 estimate, the city's population is 1,213,792, making it the fourteenth most populous Brazilian ...

, SP. Research on information technology for agribusiness. * Embrapa Agrobiology,

Seropédica Seropédica (''Silk Farm'', , , ) is a municipality located in Greater Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 75 km from the state capital of Rio de Janeiro. Its population was 83,092 (2020) and its area is 284 km². Mayor * Lucas Dutra Educ ...

, RJ. Research and development on soil biological processes (e.g. biological

nitrogen fixation Nitrogen fixation is a chemical process by which molecular nitrogen (), with a strong triple covalent bond, in the air is converted into ammonia () or related nitrogenous compounds, typically in soil or aquatic systems but also in industry. Atmo ...

) and on agroecology. * Embrapa Agroenergy,

Brasília Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...

, DF. Research and development on energy production (e.g. biodiesel, biogas, etc.) based on agricultural raw materials (oils, fats, vegetable biomass, forests). * Embrapa Environment,

Jaguariúna Jaguariúna is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of Campinas. The population is 58,722 (2020 est.) in an area of 141.39 km². The elevation is 584 m. This place name comes from the Tupi ...

, SP. Research on environmental management. * Embrapa Food Agroindustry,

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, RJ. Research on

food technology Food technology is a branch of food science that deals with the production, preservation, quality control and research and development of the food products. Early scientific research into food technology concentrated on food preservation. ...

. * Embrapa Genetic Resources and Biotechnology,

, DF. Research on

biotechnology Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used ...

biological control Biological control or biocontrol is a method of controlling pests, such as insects, mites, weeds, and plant diseases, using other organisms. It relies on predation, parasitism, herbivory, or other natural mechanisms, but typically also i ...

genetic resources Genetic resources are genetic material of actual or potential value, where genetic material means any material of plant, animal, microbial or other origin containing functional units of heredity. Genetic resources is one of the three levels of biod ...

, and biological security. * Embrapa Instrumentation,

São Carlos São Carlos (Saint Charles, in English, ; named after Saint Charles Borromeo) is a Brazilian municipality in the interior of the state of São Paulo, 254 kilometers from the city of São Paulo. With a population of 254,484 inhabitants, it is t ...

, SP. Research on

precision agriculture Precision agriculture (PA) is a farming management strategy based on observing, measuring and responding to temporal and spatial variability to improve agricultural production sustainability. It is used in both crop and livestock production. ...

, biotechnology, process automation, new materials, family farming and family agroindustry, the environment, and the quality of products and raw materials. * Embrapa Satellite Monitoring,

, SP. Research on geographical information systems, electronic networks, and on the obtention and processing of satellite images and of field data. * Embrapa Soils,

, RJ. Research on

soils Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ter ...

and soil-environment interactions. * Embrapa Tropical Agroindustry,

Fortaleza Fortaleza (, locally , Portuguese for ''Fortress'') is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeastern Brazil. It belongs to the Metropolitan mesoregion of Fortaleza and microregion of Fortaleza. It is Brazil's 5th largest city and the t ...

, CE. Research and development on the tropical fruit agroindustry (cropping, processing, storage).

Ecoregional research centers

Embrapa units that either work to perfect the agricultural production chains that are more relevant to a given region or

biome A biome () is a biogeographical unit consisting of a biological community that has formed in response to the physical environment in which they are found and a shared regional climate. Biomes may span more than one continent. Biome is a broader ...

, or to catalog, classify, assess, and conserve local natural resources. * Embrapa Acre, Rio Branco, AC. Agroforestry systems, and on Acre state natural resources and production chains. * Embrapa Agrosilvopastoral,

Sinop Sinop can refer to: * Sinop, Turkey, a city on the Black Sea ** Sinop Nuclear Power Plant, was planned in 2013, but cancelled in 2018 ** Battle of Sinop, 1853 naval battle in the Sinop port *** Russian ship ''Sinop'', Russian ships named after the ...

, MT. Agrosilvopastoral systems (integrated crop-livestock-forestry systems). * Embrapa Amapá,

Macapá Macapá () is a city in Brazil with a population of 512,902 (2020 estimation). It is the capital of Amapá state in the country's North Region. It is located on the northern channel of the Amazon River near its mouth on the Atlantic Ocean. The c ...

, AP. * Embrapa Cerrados, Planaltina, DF.

Cerrado The ''Cerrado'' (, ) is a vast ecoregion of tropical savanna in eastern Brazil, particularly in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Minas Gerais, and the Federal District. The core areas of the Cerrado biome are the ...

agricultureand natural resources. * Embrapa Coastal Tablelands,

Aracaju Aracaju () is the capital of the state of Sergipe, Brazil, located in the northeastern part of the country on the coast, about 350 km (217 mi) north of Salvador. According to the 2020 estimate, the city has 664,908 inhabitants, which rep ...

, SE. * Embrapa Cocais, São Luís, MA. * Embrapa Eastern Amazon,

Belém Belém (; Portuguese for Bethlehem; initially called Nossa Senhora de Belém do Grão-Pará, in English Our Lady of Bethlehem of Great Pará) often called Belém of Pará, is a Brazilian city, capital and largest city of the state of Pará in ...

, PA. Eastern portion of the

Amazon Biome The Amazon biome ( pt, Bioma Amazônia) contains the Amazon rainforest, an area of tropical rainforest, and other ecoregions that cover most of the Amazon basin and some adjacent areas to the north and east. The biome contains blackwater and white ...

. * Embrapa Mid-North,

Teresina Teresina is the capital and most populous municipality in the Brazilian state of Piauí. Being located in north-central Piauí 366 km from the coast, it is the only capital in the Brazilian Northeast that is not located on the shores of t ...

, PI. * Embrapa Pantanal,

Corumbá Corumbá is a municipality in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, 425 km northwest of Campo Grande, the state's capital. It has a population of approximately 112,000 inhabitants, and its economy is based mainly on agriculture, anima ...

, MS.

Pantanal The Pantanal () is a natural region encompassing the world's largest tropical wetland area, and the world's largest flooded grasslands. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but it extends into Mato Grosso and ...

. * Embrapa Rondônia,

Porto Velho Porto Velho (, ''Old Port'') is the capital of the Brazilian state of Rondônia, in the upper Amazon River basin, and a Catholic Metropolitan Archbishopric. The population is 548,952 people (as of the IBGE 2021 estimation). Located on the border of ...

, RO. * Embrapa Roraima, Boa Vista, RR. * Embrapa Semi-Arid, Petrolina, PE. Brazilian semi-arid, especially for the Caatinga biome. * Embrapa South Livestock,

Bagé Bagé () is a city located in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. In 2020, its population was 121,335 in a total area of 4,096 km2. It was the seventeenth largest city in the state according to the 2011 census. The city was founded in 1 ...

, RS. Meat and dairy cattle and sheep. * Embrapa Southeast Livestock,

, SP. Beef and dairy cattle production chain and

horse breeding Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in ...

in the Brazilian Southeast. * Embrapa Temperate Agriculture,

Pelotas Pelotas () is a Brazilian city and municipality (''município''), the third most populous in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul. It is located 270 km (168 mi) from Porto Alegre, the state's capital city, and 130 km (80.8& ...

, RS. Temperate climate regions of Brazil. * Embrapa Western Region Agriculture,

Dourados Dourados is a Brazilian municipality, situated in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Southwest of Campo Grande (the state's capital). It has a population of about 225,000 inhabitants, and its economy is based mainly in arable agriculture (particu ...

, MS. Western Brazil. * Embrapa Western Amazon,

Manaus Manaus () is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Amazonas. It is the seventh-largest city in Brazil, with an estimated 2020 population of 2,219,580 distributed over a land area of about . Located at the east center of the s ...

, AM. Agroforestry systems, and on the natural resources and production chains in the Western portion of the Amazon Biome.

References

External links

EMBRAPA's official website

Embrapa's YouTube Channel

Brazilian Agricultural Research Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuaria Government-owned companies of Brazil Research institutes in Brazil Agricultural organisations based in Brazil Agricultural research UNESCO Science Prize laureates