We are closing the first month of quarantine in Brazil, the official numbers indicate more than 40,000 people infected and 2500 deaths by COVID-19. However, given the rationalized testing policy, specialists alert there is a high number of underreported cases, and the official numbers might account for nearly 10% of cases. We are in the deep dark and there is no indication of when we will be out of the woods. The challenging situation began in a fragile political moment in Brazil. The Brazilian president has been completely despicable, disregarding the gravity of the situation, acting against mitigation strategies, and disseminating false news. There is no cohesive political leadership, governors and mayors are acting without a coordinated plan. Unemployment is growing faster and the population that was already in a precarious condition is becoming an easy prey. We do not know what will kill them first, hunger or COVID-19. Overall, activities in the country are restricted to essential services, such as health care and food supply. In this field, the main protagonists are farmer families who account for about 80% of the country’s food production. This group is mostly in a context of social vulnerability due to their depravation of public policies because lawmakers prioritise the production of commodities and exportation. Currently, the profile of a Brazilian family farming is aging and in poverty, making them twice as victims of COVID-19. They should be supported and protected. Supermarkets are recognised internationally for the low prices they pay to farmers and for offering ultra-processed foods, which are less healthy. Thus, prioritizing farmers’ direct marketing channels is essential. Street farmers markets are the Brazilians second favorite place to buy food, and most of them remain open during the outbreak with a series of security measures in place such as: bigger distance between stands, stronger asepsis, supply of cleaning material, usage of masks and advertising how to prevent contamination. The indoor farmers markets have been suspended and in some cases the producers have organised home delivery schemes. The remaining challenge is the ability to quickly adapt to a completely different form of trading. For instance, the lack of a free e-commerce platform that could help advertise and facilitate ordering is an obstacle because it makes the job more work intensive. Besides, it takes experience to become efficient in a new trading channel. In the case of existing Solidarity Purchasing Groups (GAS), Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and delivery system, there is a huge explosion in demand. Some producers report twice as many orders, overloading the capacity to cope. The above systems offer a simple buying experience for consumers and a stable demand for producers that guarantees continuous income and helps with production planning. Brazilian researches on agroecological markets, GAS and CSA systems demonstrate that those channels work mostly with family farmers that produce local organic or agroecological fresh food and can be up to 400 times cheaper than the organics commercialized by supermarkets. It generates higher revenue to farmers and more accessible quality products for costumers, breaking the myth ‘clean food is expensive’. New consumers and new groups of farmers experiencing those channels offer an interesting potential for widening such strategies in size and number after the quarantine period. For those who cannot afford to buy food, the hope is also in family farming that can supply the vulnerable population with basic food—especially if the State inject emergency resources in the existing institutional programs. This is a strong demand from social movements in Brazil, however This article is part of the TopicalCollection: Agriculture, Food & Covid-19.

中文翻译：

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巴西 COVID-19 大流行面临的挑战：粮食供应系统短缺的教训

我们将关闭巴西第一个月的隔离期，官方数据显示，有超过 40,000 人被 COVID-19 感染，2500 人死亡。然而，鉴于合理化的检测政策，专家提醒说，有大量漏报病例，官方数字可能占病例的近 10%。我们处于黑暗之中，没有迹象表明我们何时会走出困境。充满挑战的局势始于巴西一个脆弱的政治时刻。巴西总统完全卑鄙，不顾局势的严重性，违背缓解策略，散布虚假消息。没有凝聚力的政治领导，州长和市长在没有协调计划的情况下采取行动。失业率增长得更快，已经处于不稳定状态的人口正在成为容易的猎物。我们不知道什么会首先杀死他们，饥饿还是 COVID-19。总体而言，该国的活动仅限于基本服务，例如医疗保健和食品供应。在这一领域，主角是占全国粮食产量约80%的农民家庭。由于立法者优先考虑商品的生产和出口，这一群体主要由于公共政策的堕落而处于社会脆弱性的背景下。目前，巴西家庭农业的情况正在老化和贫困，使他们成为 COVID-19 的受害者的两倍。他们应该得到支持和保护。超市因其向农民支付的低价和提供不太健康的超加工食品而获得国际认可。因此，优先考虑农民的直销渠道至关重要。街头农贸市场是巴西人第二喜欢购买食品的地方，在疫情爆发期间，大多数农贸市场仍然开放，并采取了一系列安全措施，例如：摊位之间的距离更大、无菌操作更强、提供清洁材料、使用口罩和宣传如何防止污染。室内农贸市场已暂停，在某些情况下，生产者组织了送货上门计划。剩下的挑战是快速适应完全不同的交易形式的能力。例如，缺乏可以帮助做广告和促进订购的免费电子商务平台是一个障碍，因为它使工作更加密集。此外，在新的交易渠道中变得高效需要经验。在现有的团结采购组织 (GAS)、社区支持农业 (CSA) 和交付系统的情况下，需求出现了巨大的爆炸式增长。一些生产商报告的订单数量增加了一倍，使应对能力超载。上述系统为消费者提供了简单的购买体验，为生产者提供了稳定的需求，保证了持续的收入并有助于生产计划。巴西对农业生态市场的研究，GAS 和 CSA 系统表明，这些渠道主要与生产当地有机或农业生态新鲜食品的家庭农民合作，并且比超市商业化的有机食品便宜 400 倍。它为农民创造了更高的收入，为消费者带来了更容易获得的优质产品，打破了“清洁食品价格昂贵”的神话。体验这些渠道的新消费者和新农民群体为在隔离期后扩大此类战略的规模和数量提供了有趣的潜力。对于那些买不起食物的人来说，希望也寄希望于能够为弱势群体提供基本食物的家庭农业——特别是如果国家在现有的机构计划中注入紧急资源的话。这是巴西社会运动的强烈需求，