O sistema de integração da avicultura de corte na mesorregião oeste paranaense: uma análise sob a ótica da Nova Economia Institucional.

Abstract

Domestic broiler farming has stood out among other productive sectors in recent decades. The exponential performance of this sector allowed Brazil to assume a prominent position in the world ranking as the largest exporter and the third largest chicken meat farming. Although several Brazilian states farm this type of meat, farming is concentrated in the southern region. In Paraná, the broiler agroindustrial system is a consolidated activity mainly in the countryside and this important protein farming contributes significantly to the state economy. Presently, Paraná state is the largest producer and exporter in Brazil. In this scenario, the effectiveness in coordinating the broiler agroindustrial system and the adopted governance model has a fundamental role in the development and growth of the sector. Thus, this study aims to analyze the relationships that underlie the governance structure between poultry farmers and agroindustry, and broiler processing in the western mesoregion of Paraná. Therefore, as basis are used the assumptions and theoretical parameters, with emphasis in the Transaction Costs Economics. The analysis of the poultry production contracts between agribusiness and poultry farmers in the region under study served as empirical data, as well as the interviews with the agroindustry managers and poultry farmers. For data analysis, it is used the qualitative approach based on both the nature of the problem and the desired profoundness level. The main results showed that all the slaughter agroindustry and the poultry processing in the region use contracts as mechanisms for coordinating transactions between agents. In addition, this form of governance has enabled improvements in coordination throughout the poultry agribusiness system, reduction of transaction costs and operational and competitive advantages through the ease adaptation of agents to new market requirements. Such findings corroborate to other studies in the area and allows inferring that the form of governance presents itself as an assertive instrument of farming coordination and quality assurance of the poultry meat farming. However, comparing the theoretical framework of Transaction Costs Economics with the empirical findings and benefits provided by the contractual farming system, it was identified the presence of gaps in the relationship between producers and agroindustry, such as the unequal balance of strength between the agents and existence of informational asymmetries. Furthermore, it was identified the marked degree of asset specificity and the presence of opportunism and uncertainty in the contractual relationship. The analysis provided by this research can contribute to the discussion and elaboration of contractual models for poultry farming, aligned strategically to the interests of agents, in order to minimize any existing gaps in the relationship.