The effects of climate change, urbanization and water restriction on the planet make it difficult to obtain the water needed to meet the growing demands of agriculture. 

In Brazil the need to preserve genetic and energetic resources aimed at bioenergy is especially important, once most of the crops that make up the productive foundation of the country are of exotic origin.

Maguey do Cerrado is a cultivar which is a source for foods, fibers and fuels that, due to an interaction with the environment, requires less water (because of its CAM metabolism).

The typical characteristic of those that use this metabolism is the production of reserve carbohydrates (fructans) which allow the development of the plant through osmoregulation, cryopreservation and tolerance to drought.

The Maguey do Cerrado ecotype is a morphological variety of the Salmiana section of the Agave genus grown in the Cerrado region of Goiás, Central- West region of Brazil – was established.

Cerrado is a savanna biome that gathers a complex mosaic of several types of vegetation, which cover approximately 2.000.000 km of Central Brazil. 

The Maguey do Cerrado presents structural and functional characteristics of adaptation to environments with water restriction. It is identified as indicators of structural modification the adaptations developed for greater efficiency in water abstraction and lower energy expenditure.

Another indicator can be measured by the quality of the sap produced by the plants, rich in polysaccharides, simple sugars and alcohol.

The proposal stands out for the innovation in the management model articulated in network and the generation of products and solutions that can be replicated on a world scale.

It also stands out for rescuing a traditional experience, amplified by research and development, generating a new product and an alternate productive model with sustainable foundations in balance with nature.

The Maguey do Cerrado product platform is structured in five pillars:

Nursery

Urban Cultivation

Agroecological Cultivation

Studies and tests;

Intellectual production;

Cultivation of microorganisms;

Production of biomass and biopolymers;

Gastronomy:

Elaboration of nutritive and functional caloric sweetener;

Manufacture of distilled beverages;

Nutraceuticals:

Manufacture of food fibers;

Design:

Ecological packaging;

Fiber Xaxins;

Tics and IoT:

Information platform;

Proof of concept app;

Traceable packaging;

Smart packaging;

Pharmacological Products:

Elaboration of Surgical Suture;

Manufacture of artificial leather;

Development of metabolic compounds;

Printed media publications;

Digital publications;

Audio-visual;

Offices;

Workshop;

Scientific divulgation;