Natural abundance analysis of the role played by 15 N as indicator for the certification of organic-system deriving food.

BACKGROUND: The natural abundance of stable isotope 15 N (δ15 N) in production systems has emerged as an alternative to distinguish organic products from conventional ones. This study evaluated the use of δ15 N values recorded for nitrogen fertilizers, soil and plant tissue in order to set the differences between organic and conventional agricultural production systems applied to rice, potatoes, apple and banana crops. RESULTS: Values of δ15 N recorded for N sources ranged from +5.58‰ to +18.27‰ and from -3.55‰ to +3.19‰ in organic and synthetic fertilizers, respectively. Values recorded for δ15 N in food from organic rice, potatoes and banana farms were higher than values recorded for δ15 N in conventional farms; the same was observed for values recorded for δ15 N in leaves from the four crops. CONCLUSION: Results have allowed for differentiation between production systems due to values of δ15 N recorded in leaves of all crops and food, for rice, potatoes and banana trees. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Análise econômico-financeira do gerenciamento dos resíduos sólidos orgânicos em uma agroindústria de processamento mínimo de hortaliças / Economic and financial analysis of the management of organic solid waste from a small-scale agro-processing industry

RESUMO As atividades agroindustriais geram grandes quantidades de resíduos sólidos orgânicos. Por essa razão, são responsáveis por estabelecer metas e estratégias de gerenciamento de seus resíduos, visando, sempre que possível, à reutilização, à reciclagem e ao tratamento. Realizou-se um estudo de caso em que foi avaliada a viabilidade econômico-financeira de diferentes cenários para o gerenciamento de resíduos sólidos orgânicos provenientes do processamento mínimo de hortaliças em uma agroindústria localizada na cidade de Teresópolis, no estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil. Os cenários que avaliaram os custos com a disposição final dos resíduos sólidos orgânicos em aterros sanitários se apresentaram elevados. Já no cenário que considerou o tratamento dos resíduos sólidos orgânicos, por meio da técnica de compostagem, observou-se que este foi viável financeiramente e atrativo para investimento, pois apresentou uma rentabilidade na ordem de 19,28% a.a., rentabilidade esta superior às diferentes opções de aplicações financeiras disponíveis no mercado. Com o tratamento dos resíduos sólidos orgânicos e a comercialização do composto produzido, promove-se a geração de receita para a agroindústria e a destinação ambientalmente correta desses resíduos, pois o tratamento não só reduz os impactos ambientais e o volume de resíduos gerados, mas também permite a reinserção dos nutrientes no ciclo produtivo de novas culturas, gerando renda para a agroindústria. Para o tratamento dos resíduos faz-se necessário um investimento inicial de R$ 385.388,09, e estimou-se que o tempo necessário para a recuperação do capital financeiro foi de curto prazo, com quatro anos e dez meses.

ABSTRACT Agro-industrial activities generate large quantities of organic solid waste. For this reason, they are responsible for establishing goals and strategies for the management of their waste, aiming at reuse, recycling, and treatment whenever possible. This work presents a case study was carried out to evaluate the economic and financial viability of different scenarios for the management of agro-industry residues generated by the minimum processing of vegetables, located in Teresopolis, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The scenarios that evaluated the costs of disposal of organic solid waste in landfills were high. On the other hand, in the scenario that considered the treatment of organic solid wastes, through the composting technique, it was observed that it was financially feasible and attractive for investment, since it presented a profitability of 19.28% per year, which is higher than different options available in the market. With the treatment of organic solid waste and the commercialization of the compound produced, the generation of revenue for the agroindustry and the environmentally correct destination of this waste are promoted, since it not only reduces the environmental impacts and the volume of waste generated, but also allows the reinsertion of nutrients into the productive cycle of new crops, generating income for the agroindustry. For the treatment of waste, an initial investment of R$ 385,388.09 is necessary, where it was estimated that the time required to recover financial capital was in the short term, with four years and ten months.