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Western Bahia is not a rain forest. In its natural state, the
cerrado in Western Bahia is generally characterized by thinly
populated small trees of various types. The productive dry land
areas in Western Bahia sit on top of a large plateau. The western
border of Bahia is one edge of this plateau. Elevation in Western
Bahia ranges from roughly 600 to 900 meters above sea level. Many
of the tributaries that flow into the Sao Francisco River begin
within 30 kilometers of the edge of the plateau. Other than these
river valleys, the terrain is generally very flat. The area of
Bahia where CGI operations are located is about 12 degrees south of
the equator. In this region, there are two distinct seasons. The
dryland growing season begins in October and ends in April. Average
temperatures in the Western Bahia range from 18° Celsius (64°F) to
33° Celsius (91°F). The warmest months come during the growing
season. Beginning in April and ending in October, temperatures are
cooler generally in the 70's and low 80's during the day. The
average of between 1,800 millimeters (71 inches) and 1,500
millimeters (59 inches) of rain in a year. Nearly all this rainfall
occurs between October and April. Almost no rain falls between
April and October. Given the location relative to the equator,
daylight hours are relatively consistent throughout the year. The
dry season is suitable to grow crops with irrigation as the
temperature remains warm and the daylight hours are sufficient.
The city nearest CGI operations and where the Brazil office is
located is Luis Eduardo Magalhaes (LEM), a city of about 40,000
people. Twenty-five years ago LEM consisted of only a small stand
where travelers could stop to buy drinks. As the cerrado was
developed, the city sprung up solely because of the new agricultural
economy in the area. Local companies and representatives of
multinational and national companies located in LEM provide a market
for all necessary agricultural inputs as well as a market for
agricultural commodities. Federal highway BR-020 connects LEM and
Brasilia with about 530 kilometers of good, asphalt road. It runs
nearly parallel with the western border of Bahia. The anel de
soja (the soybean ring) is also asphalted and creates a large
ring to the north of LEM improving access to many farms north of the
city. They reach almost all farms, however, one must still travel
on dirt roads which are largely maintained by the group of farmers
dependent upon them.
By Brazilian standards, Western Bahia is no longer a frontier area.
It has proven itself as a consistently productive area and much of
the best land has been developed. It has easy access to ports for
export of cotton and soybeans and import of fertilizer products.
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