Perfil socioeconômico de produtores de leite da região sudoeste do Paraná: um estudo a partir de diferentes níveis de produtividade

The aim of this work is to characterize milk producers in Southwestern Paraná. It has been considered technical, technological, managerial, economic and social aspects. 202 producers have been interviewed, grouped into three distinct clusters, according to productivity levels. As results, milk producers in the region presented, on average, superior indicators when compared to data in Paraná, ratifying better organization and productive system in the region. Relevant differences among producers with different productivity levels could be pointed out. Low-productivity producers, in general, are more engaged in rural work, produce low volume of milk and work in milk activity for longer time, which can indicate path dependency. Besides that, higher percentage of producers in that group doesn’t have milk as main activity and present limitations related to either farm size or farm characteristics. Other limitations are related to technological level, management systems, access to credit, technical and managerial assistance, training and investments in milk activity.