AgricultureID

State · BR-BA

Bahia

A strongly contrasted climate — dry-winter tropical savanna (Aw) on the western Cerrado plateau, a hot semi-arid (BSh) interior sertão, and a humid tropical (Am) Atlantic coastal belt in the south.

Major crop systems

  • Cocoa on the humid southern Atlantic coast — Bahia is the historic heart of Brazilian cacao
  • Soybean, maize and cotton on the western Cerrado plateau (Oeste Baiano, around Barreiras and Luís Eduardo Magalhães)
  • Irrigated fruit — grape, mango and melon — in the São Francisco river valley around Juazeiro
  • Coffee on the Chapada and drought-tolerant crops in the semi-arid interior

Major livestock systems

  • Beef cattle across the interior
  • Goats and sheep adapted to the semi-arid sertão

Agricultural land: One of Brazil's most agriculturally diverse states, ranging from a modern grain frontier in the west to drought-prone family farming in the sertão and irrigated fruit in the São Francisco valley. Irrigation: Rainfed cropping dominates the coast and western plateau, but irrigation is decisive for the São Francisco valley fruit belt and supports centre-pivot systems in the western Cerrado.

Agroecological zones: Aw (Tropical savanna (dry winter)), BSh (Hot semi-arid (steppe)), Am (Tropical monsoon)

Documented crops & livestock

Official institutions

  • Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE) — National statistical institute; agricultural census and municipal production surveys.
  • Companhia Nacional de Abastecimento (CONAB) — Federal crop-supply agency; official production and harvest surveys.
  • Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (Embrapa) — Federal agricultural research corporation; Embrapa Mandioca e Fruticultura (Cruz das Almas) is based in the state.
  • Comissão Executiva do Plano da Lavoura Cacaueira (CEPLAC) / SEAGRI-BA — Federal cacao-development agency and the Bahia state agriculture secretariat.

Data coverage & limitations

Descriptive profile; subnational statistics for Bahia are published by IBGE, CONAB, Embrapa and CEPLAC and are not reproduced numerically here.

  • Boundaries and administrative classifications follow the official ISO 3166-2 code BR-BA.
  • Any production statistics are dated, source-specific and periodically revised; read them with their year and dataset version.
  • The state combines a modern western grain frontier, semi-arid smallholder farming and coastal cacao, so state totals blend very different systems.

Sources

This article draws on the following authoritative sources. See our sources & methodology for how they are selected.

  1. [1]Embrapa — Brazilian agricultural research corporation (opens in a new tab)

    Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa)

    High

    Cited for: Cocoa, Cerrado grain and irrigated-fruit agronomy

    Type:
    Research institute
    Jurisdiction:
    Brazil
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12
  2. [2]FAOSTAT — FAO statistical database (opens in a new tab)

    Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

    Authoritative

    Cited for: National production and yield context

    Type:
    Intergovernmental organization
    Jurisdiction:
    Global
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12