Productive Coffee Chain: A Case Study of the Logistic Flow of Field Grain for Export

Abstract

The agribusiness sector is one of the most important Brazilian economic bases and has an expressive impact on its GDP. Brazil is one of the largest global exporters of grains, fruits, cereals and is an essential player in agriculture worldwide. However, despite this importance, the sector lacks studies that could boost agribusiness growth. One of the most relevant products in Brazilian agriculture is coffee grain. The country is the world's largest producer and exporter of it. Our objective is to carry out a case study identifying processes by which coffee grains go through from planting to exportation. The study was conducted in a cooperative in the State of Minas Gerais and is part of research on the coffee production chain which seeks to present solutions for the development and increase of the Brazilian coffee chain's competitiveness. The methodology is based on a literature review associated with a case study. As the main result, the understanding of the coffee production made it possible to correlate the stages of the coffee process with production engineering, evidencing logistics as the main actor. Moreover, it highlights some points which need attention and investments.