Mathematical programming accelerates implementation of agro-industrial sugarcane complex

With the current demand for Brazilian sugarcane, the importance to investors of a faster implementation of agro-industrial complexes has been increasing. Estimates suggest that a 4-year implementation may enhance financial value creation by 10% when compared to the usual 6-year implementation. Given a desired production and a target implementation horizon, the quadratic programming model presented in this paper offers a feasible plantation schedule with minimum deviation from the plan. The model was used as an important tool in two business plans.