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The Transformation of the Brazilian Cerrado Into an Agricultural Powerhouse Was Not the Work of a Single Tractor Brand. While Valmet (Valtra) Was Pioneering, Massey Ferguson Also Played an Equally Decisive Role With Its Robust and Popular Models.
Although Valmet (now Valtra) is recognized for its pioneering steps, Massey Ferguson played an equally crucial role. Two giants, true references of tractor brands, in the agricultural conquest of the Cerrado since the 1960s.
Before the 1960s, the vast Brazilian Cerrado was a sleeping giant, considered unsuitable for intensive agriculture. Its transformation into one of the world’s granaries required a revolution, and at its heart was mechanization, led by tractors.
Valmet (Now Valtra): Pioneering Brazilian Agriculture With Innovative Solutions and Power Adapted to National Soil
Valmet, of Finnish origin, arrived in Brazil in 1960, establishing the country’s first tractor factory. From the beginning, it focused on developing machines adapted to Brazilian conditions, maintaining Scandinavian robustness. Innovations such as narrow tractors for coffee plantations and alcohol engines adapted from diesel marked its trajectory.
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The water that almost everyone throws away after cooking potatoes carries nutrients released during the preparation and can be reused to help in the development of plants when used correctly at the base of gardens and pots, at no additional cost and without changing the routine.
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The sea water temperature rose from 28 to 34 degrees in Santa Catarina and killed up to 90% of the oysters: producers who planted over 1 million seeds lost practically everything and say that if it happens again, production is doomed to end.
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An Indian tree that grows in the Brazilian Northeast produces an oil capable of acting against more than 200 species of pests and interrupting the insect cycle, gaining ground as a natural alternative in soybean, cotton, and vegetable crops.
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The rise in oil prices in the Middle East is already affecting Brazilian sugar: mills in the Central-South are seeing their margins shrink just as ethanol gains strength.
For the Cerrado, the Valmet 138-4 Turbo, launched in 1983 with 140 hp and 4×4 traction, was a milestone, being for many years the most powerful tractor produced in Brazil and ideal for heavy soil preparation in the region. Valmet also introduced a dual air filtration system, crucial for the durability of engines in the dusty conditions of the Cerrado.
Massey Ferguson: The Robust “Workhorse” That Propelled the Transformation of the Cerrado With Popularity and Scale
Massey Ferguson began operations in Brazil in 1958, launching its first domestically manufactured tractor, the MF 50 “Cinquentinha”, in 1961, already with a high level of localization. The brand quickly became prominent. Models like the MF 275 and the MF 200 Series, introduced in the 1970s, were essential for the expansion of grain production in the Cerrado, becoming the best-sellers.
Massey Ferguson’s strategy in the 1960s was to develop “more robust tractors with greater traction capacity” aimed at expanding agricultural frontiers. With a market leadership that lasted nearly 50 years and the largest tractor factory in Latin America in Canoas (RS), Massey Ferguson had massive production capacity.
How Tractors and Technology Overcame the Challenges of the Cerrado
The Cerrado posed challenges such as acidic soils and the need for large-scale deforestation. “Large machines” were indispensable. Techniques like the “Correntão,” towed by powerful tractors (often tracked during the initial phase), removed vegetation. Subsequently, robust wheeled tractors from Valmet and Massey Ferguson performed soil preparation (plowing, liming, subsoiling).
This mechanization was crucial to applying agronomic solutions developed by Embrapa (soil correction, adapted crop varieties) and enabled by government programs like Polocentro, which provided financing for modernization.
Valmet (Valtra) and Massey Ferguson: A Comparative Perspective and the Importance of Each Tractor Brand in the Mechanization of the Cerrado
Both Valmet and Massey Ferguson were key participants in the National Agricultural Tractor Industry Plan. Valmet often stood out for its technological pioneering, like the first national turbo 4WD tractor. Massey Ferguson, in turn, shone for its massive popularity and perceived reliability of its “workhorse” tractors, such as the MF 275, which became the brand’s best-seller.
The production scale and the widespread adoption of Massey Ferguson tractors demonstrate a profound and widespread impact. Thus, both brands were equally crucial: Valmet innovating and Massey Ferguson popularizing and providing the robustness at scale needed to tame the Cerrado.
Está matéria está mais parecendo um merchandising destas marcas. Quem abriu foi a extinta CBT – COMPANHIA BRASILEIRA DE TRATORES.
É uma boa propaganda das marcas de tratores Valtra e Massey Ferguson ( que por sinal são ótimos equipamentos), mas na verdade a marca que começou o desbravamento do cerrado foi o CBT, o 1090 e depois o1105. Os tratores eram grandes e fortes mas os motores Perkins do 1090 da época superaqueciam porque era muito calor. Mas o 1105 já veio com motor Mercedes e já resolveu o problema. Eu sou testemunha ocular. Pelo menos entre 74 ou 75 em uma fazenda na margem do rio Serrote ali entre Maracaju e Sidrolândia era assim.
Desde 1988 quando aqui cheguei no tocantins trabalhei em reformadora de pneus agricolas.
O trator que desbravou nossos cerrados foram os valente CBT 1090 2105 INCLUSIVE ALGUNS TRAÇADOS .
O modelo da massey mais popular na época era o 95x.
Só quem tem é usou sabe CBT 1105 E 2105 desbravou o Goiás e Tocantins…
CBT/C 10 e cerrado este era trio.