Requeijão Moreno, a product of the Mucuri Valley in Minas Gerais and its socioeconomic importance

Abstract

Artisanal cheese production in Brazil is a tradition and is on the rise. In Minas Gerais state, the “Queijo Minas Artesanal” is a national historical and cultural intangible heritage, with several recognized regions. The present research sought to characterize the production technique of Requeijão Moreno in the Mucuri Valley. Producer profiling and production flowchart were drawn by applying semi-structured questionnaires to producers while visiting thirteen family farming properties (25% sampling), selected by the Minas Gerais Technical Assistance and Rural Extension Company (EMATER) MG from among the municipalities in the Teófilo Otoni microregion. It was confirmed that the Requeijão Moreno production is a family tradition, produced mostly by couples aged 56 to 70 with incomplete primary education, and primarily natural of the region. The Requeijão Moreno contribution to the familiar income of the visited producers is between 80 and 100%, with variations influenced by typical regional seasonality and other environmental factors. The resulting data revealed that the research area would greatly benefit from local development programs based on territoriality to add value to rural producers, to the Requeijão Moreno as a product, and the terroir, while fostering socioeconomic advancements. As a result, the present research may contribute to the recognition of the region, possible regulation of Requeijão Moreno production, and the perpetuation of this traditional delicacy from Mucuri Valley (MG).