LEARNING, COOPERATION AND INNOVATIVE CAPACITY OF LOCAL PRODUCTIVE ARRANGEMENTS OF SHRIMP FARMING IN CEARA

Abstract

The article makes an analysis of local productive arrangements (LPA) of shrimp farming in Ceara coast, since the State of Ceara is, at the present, the largest producer of shrimp in Brazil and presents along its river basins, two very characteristic LPA (east and west coasts). The focus of the analysis concentrates on productive and innovative capacity, with emphasis on the mechanisms of learning, interaction/cooperation and innovative capacity as competitiveness factor of these LPA. A quantitative-qualitative research with descriptive and explanatory character was performed, being delineated as a case study, consisting of collection of secondary and primary data, through interviews and questionnaires with companies and other agents. Among the LPA analyzed, the LPA from west coast shows greater innovative capacity. Innovations adopted in both arrangements are incremental, and low and medium complexity, partly caused by the practice of learning-by-doing, learning-by-using and learning-by-interacting. The form of cooperation in the arrangements of shrimp farming presents vertical, verifying low horizontal interaction between companies and other local agents, particularly in LPA from east coast. This configuration strongly influences the production capacity and the search of advantages of these LPA.