Knowledge of the urban population of Botucatu-SP on agroecology and organic food production

Resumo

Currently the world population seeks a healthy and sustainable source of food, with the intention of a good life quality. Given this situation, organic production with an agroecological approach is a way to provide healthier food to the community. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the knowledge of the population of Botucatu-SP on agroecology and organic food production. The methodology was based on the application of questionnaires to 93 adult people. The results analysis consisted of the responses percentage and data qualitative description. The results showed that 47.3% of the interviewees know what agroecology is. Regarding the knowledge on organic products, 96.7% of the respondents said they know, and 61.5% consume them. The high price (61.5%) is the main factor that decreases the consumption of these products according to the community. Regarding organic food marketing sites, 84.7% of the interviewees know at least one sale point in the city. Results demonstrate that the Botucatu population has little knowledge on agroecology, however, when questioned about the organic production they know how to opine. This fact may be related to several producers, marketing points, some certifiers, as well as projects of university extension that deal with organic production in the city.