Seeking to ally best practices to technology and the efficiency of coffee growing processes, Cooabriel is launching the "Agricultural Drone" project. Still in the structuring and planning phase, the pilot project has an initial investment of over R$ 500,000.00. At first, the initiative will serve cooperative members who are part of the Efficient Conilon Program, which is a program of technical and managerial assistance provided by the cooperative to help in the planning and cost management of the properties. 

Cooabriel's president, Luiz Carlos Bastianello, emphasizes that the cooperative's goal is not to generate profits, but to make quality services available to its members. Another important aspect, according to Bastianello, is the fact that the initiative may contribute to overcome one of the biggest challenges of production, which is the shortage of labor. "We need to look for alternatives together, so that we can continue producing more efficiently. If there are tools that can help us, we need to look for them. With this in mind, we are structuring this project and we believe that in a short time it should be expanded.  

Cooabriel's superintendent, Carlos Augusto Pandolfi, points out that innovation is one of the cooperative's values and that this project is in line with that. "Our purpose is to be, in fact, the best business option for our members and with this launch we are thinking about that. It is a project that is being developed with a lot of professionalism, that has a high investment, but that we believe has a lot of potential", he stated. 

Cooabriel's agronomist, Henrique Capucho, will be in charge of the project and, according to him, "the goal is to deliver a qualified service, with safety, and that is able to meet the fundamental principles of sustainability", he highlighted.

Cooabriel's agronomist, Roberto Passon Casagrande, who is a technical consultant of the Efficient Conilon Program, points out other advantages of the initiative. "Besides technological innovation and lower costs, a major advance will be the possibility to control pests and diseases in the fields at the right times. The technical monitoring aims to act preventively and the drone service can shorten the period between the technical recommendation and spraying," he explained. 
 
According to Cooabriel's Corporate Agricultural Manager, José Roberto Gonçalves, the Agricultural Drone project will be innovative in the region, since it will work with a focus on the monitoring and management of pests and plant diseases, control targets. José Roberto comments that there was an important partnership for the structuring of the project. "In this initial phase, we could count on the support of the company Agrodrone, which is already certified and active in the market," he explained.  
 
For Cooabriel's cooperative member, Gislene Pereira Machado, from Vila Valério, the "Agricultural Drone" will be a great advance. "In some areas of the property we have challenges to perform spraying, due to the relief. We also face a shortage of labor, especially in times of peak demand, in addition to high hiring costs. This is a very good initiative, and being able to count on the spraying service through drones will make the process faster and more efficient," he concluded.