Socioeconomic factors in the production of fresh cheese in family agribusiness of Vicosa, MG, Brazil/Fatores socioeconomicos da producao de queijo minas frescal em agroindustrias familiares de Vicosa, MG

The production of minas frescal cheese in familiar agribusiness is widely diffused in Minas Gerais State, associated to cultural tradition, consumer demand and product yield. The objectives of this study were to evaluate socioeconomic aspects on the production of minas frescal cheese produced in familiar agroindustries in the city of Vicosa-MG, Brazil and to characterize the main difficulties in this sector. Data were collected by the in loco interview method in 12 agribussiness, six of them inspected and six not inspected. The familiar producer income obtained from the production of minas frescal cheese varied from 10% to 85% of the total familiar income, with higher percentages for the inspected agribusiness. In 83% of the inspected agroindustries, the total income was linked to the production of the cheese. The obstacles in the formal production included the competition with informal products, low price and difficulty of access to credit lines, and, for informal producers, included also lack of raw material and manpower, seasonal variation of production and the absence of adequate production infrastructure. The production of minas frescal cheese is a relevant activity on the composition of agribusiness familyincome, however, there is a need to implement local public policies to better structuring of the sector, which will contribute for sustainability of the familiar production.