Red rice was introduced to Brazil by the Portuguese during the 16th century, in the present state of Bahia. The crop did not grow very well in this location but during the following two centuries thrived in the Northern state of Maranhão. In 1772 the Portuguese Crown, which was keen to supply urban areas solely with the much more productive white rice, prohibited producing red rice. This is why production migrated to the semi-arid region of the country, mainly in the state of Paraíba. Here red rice of the variety Oriza Sativa became the main ingredient of regional food traditions and spread to the surrounding areas.
In Paraíba, the product is also known as arroz da terra (earth rice) and arroz de Veneza (Venetian rice), as it was wrongly thought to have first come to Brazil on ships from Venice. The rice is mostly produced in the Piancó river Valley, a basin with very fertile soil whose geographical isolation and lack of advanced technologies did not encourage the introduction of other varieties. With an area of about 5000 hectares cultivated annually, the Piancó Valley remains the sanctuary for red rice, yielding about half of Brazil’s total production. However, the area employed for growing red rice has decreased to about a third of what it was in the past. Although consumer demand does not seem to have fallen over this period, local producers have seen their output drop due to drought and low productivity.
Red rice from the Piancó Valley is still produced in the traditional way using the original rudimentary methods without additional chemical treatments, and still supports the subsistence of farmers in the whole area. Rice growers hand-plough their paddy fields and then seed in the month of January, using the manure from their oxen as fertilizer. There are no irrigation systems in the area so producers have to rely on the occasional rain that falls from January to March. The rice is harvested by hand in June: each producer keeps part of the harvest as seed for the next year, the remaining is then husked by small machines kept by the various communities. Part of the this rice is kept for family consumption and the rest is sold to wholesalers, who buy it at a price often lower than the cost of production.

The Presidium
For two centuries red rice has supported the diet of much of the population living in the semi-arid region of north-east Brazil, but in spite of the increasing demand from restaurants in Brazil’s cities wishing to promote regional food traditions, production is falling. The Presidium was set up following the notification by Embrapa Meio-Norte in Teresina (Piauí) of the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture’s Enterprise for Agricultural and Livestock Research. It involves rice growers who are members of the Association of Small Producers of Red Rice from Santana dos Garrotes, one of the main red rice growing centers in the Piancó valley.
The association aims to promote the product and sell it at a better price, avoiding the wholesalers’ adverse policies. The Presidium focuses on three main areas: first of all it is working to strengthen the rice growers’ association, expanding the number of members and links with local authorities. Secondly it is giving assistance in the husking and conservation stages, with the help of Italian and local experts and the purchase of suitable equipment. Finally it is optimizing product packaging and promoting the product on the domestic market, both through the network of Terra Madre chefs and through retail distribution.

Production area
Municipality of Santana dos Garrotes, Vale do Piancó, State of Paraíba


Presidium supported by
Veneto Regional Authority

With the patronage of
Brazilian Ministry of Agricultural Development