The woman and her fruits: contribution of the Cerrado in the Kalunga quilombola extractive
agriculture system
extractive agriculture; Kalunga; social reproduction; Cerrado.
In the Cerrado, family farming has the characteristic of constituting a system of extractive
agriculture. The produce can be varied and is, therefore, referred to as the ensemble of different productive
activities of the family in its property. In the federal state of Goiás, in the area now recognized by the
government of Goiás as a Kalunga Historical and Cultural Heritage Site (SHPCK) and by the UN as the
first Territory and Area Conserved by Indigenous and Local Communities (TICCA) in Brazil, the Kalunga
people make use of the resources provided by the biome for self-consumption and commercialization. Due
to their isolation, they have developed a strong bond with the biome and the conditions of their survival.
Thus, the residents of the Kalunga community Vão de Almas are farmers, extractivists and some maintain
the tradition of fishing. Extractivism not only generates income, it provides products for consumption and
for the manufacture of utensils and tools. The extractive practice is, therefore, more than an activity that
allows a financial return for those who exercise it. It is part of the tradition of these people. Using the
LUME method, a tool capable of absorbing the relationships between the social, economic and ecological
areas within the extractive agricultural system, the general objective of this work is to analyze the function
of extractivism of Cerrado fruits in Kalunga productive systems and to understand how these ensure the
minimum conditions for the social reproduction of families. With the specific objectives, it is desired: i) to
characterize the extractive agricultural system; ii) to identify and to map the flows of inputs, products,
monetary and non-monetary income of the extractive agricultural system; iii) to describe the social division
of labor within the extractive agricultural system. The results showed that extractive activity is the
responsibility of women; as a rule, extractivism is always associated with some other source of income and
does not cover the main expenses, but it is an important income for the social reproduction of families;
Agricultural production and animal husbandry translate into the community's self-sufficiency and
encompass an income strategy for families. The strength that exists in this people-territory relationship
translates into the resistance of a people and the guarantee that they will not erase the history of the
Kalunga. There is a clear need for a social organization that contemplates the residents of the entire
territory, that promotes equal distribution of the opportunities that arrive and that overcomes the existing
personal conflicts, aiming at the strengthening of the community.