FAIR TRADE AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT FOR SUSTAINABILITY – THE CASE OF A COMMUNITY THAT SUSTAINS AGRICULTURE (CSA)

Abstract

This study analyzes the environmental performance of organic production of fruits and vegetables at Chácara Vale Verde, a rural establishment located in Brasília (Brazil), which bases its market relations on the organization of a “community that sustains agriculture” (CSA). The main objective of the research is to understand the role of this strategy of solidarity economy for the sustainable development of agriculture, as carried out in this reference rural establishment. The assessment was carried out via application of a system for weighted environmental impact assessment of rural activities (Apoia-NovoRural), which integrates 62 environmental performance indicators, related to five dimensions of sustainability. According to data collection and the analysis of field evidence, the performance indices obtained (in multi-attribute indices from 0 to 1, with baseline modeled at 0.7) for these five dimensions were: Landscape Ecology (0.78), Environmental Quality – atmosphere, water and soil (average index 0.79), Sociocultural Values (0.86), Economic Values (0.88), and Management and Administration (0.94), with an integrated sustainability index of 0.85. These results attest to the excellent environmental performance of the establishment, whose focus on solidarity relations with the collective, represented by the CSA, represents a strategy of sustainable development, focused on food quality and safety.