Lavras
Encyclopedia
Lavras is a city and municipality
in Southern Minas Gerais
state, Brazil
. Located at an altitude of 900 m, it has an approximate population of 80,000 inhabitants. The area of the municipality is 566.1 km². The average annual temperature is 19.4°C and the average annual rainfall is 1,529.7 ml.
Located near the Circuit of the Waters—a series of spas in the state of São Paulo
and Minas Gerais
—and the historical cities of Minas, it is connected by highway
to the state capital, Belo Horizonte
(230 km.), to São Paulo (370 km.) and Rio de Janeiro
(420 km.)
The city is a university
center with one of Brazil
's top universities in the agricultural area— UFLA - Universidade Federal de Lavras http://www.ufla.br/. Founded in 1908 it is well-known in Brazil
and abroad for its courses in agronomy
and veterinary science
. Seventy percent of its 305 teachers have Ph. D. degrees. There are 2,673 undergraduate students and 5,884 graduate students, with 546 doing the M.S. and 374 doing the Ph.D. In a recent study, out of 875 schools analysed UFLA was voted the third best in the country in its courses.
Besides the university
, the municipality also bases its economic life on coffee
, beans, rice
, corn
, citrus fruits, and dairy cattle. There are small industries producing clothing
, towels, metallurgy
and dairy products.
Lavras was a station on the Estrada de Ferro Oeste de Minas
, a narrow gauge railway.
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in Southern Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
state, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
. Located at an altitude of 900 m, it has an approximate population of 80,000 inhabitants. The area of the municipality is 566.1 km². The average annual temperature is 19.4°C and the average annual rainfall is 1,529.7 ml.
Located near the Circuit of the Waters—a series of spas in the state of São Paulo
São Paulo (state)
São Paulo is a state in Brazil. It is the major industrial and economic powerhouse of the Brazilian economy. Named after Saint Paul, São Paulo has the largest population, industrial complex, and economic production in the country. It is the richest state in Brazil...
and Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
—and the historical cities of Minas, it is connected by highway
Highway
A highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...
to the state capital, Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country...
(230 km.), to São Paulo (370 km.) and Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
(420 km.)
The city is a university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
center with one of Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
's top universities in the agricultural area— UFLA - Universidade Federal de Lavras http://www.ufla.br/. Founded in 1908 it is well-known in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
and abroad for its courses in agronomy
Agronomy
Agronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants for food, fuel, feed, fiber, and reclamation. Agronomy encompasses work in the areas of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and soil science. Agronomy is the application of a combination of sciences like biology,...
and veterinary science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
. Seventy percent of its 305 teachers have Ph. D. degrees. There are 2,673 undergraduate students and 5,884 graduate students, with 546 doing the M.S. and 374 doing the Ph.D. In a recent study, out of 875 schools analysed UFLA was voted the third best in the country in its courses.
Besides the university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, the municipality also bases its economic life on coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
, beans, rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
, corn
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
, citrus fruits, and dairy cattle. There are small industries producing clothing
Clothing
Clothing refers to any covering for the human body that is worn. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic and is a feature of nearly all human societies...
, towels, metallurgy
Metallurgy
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. It is also the technology of metals: the way in which science is applied to their practical use...
and dairy products.
Lavras was a station on the Estrada de Ferro Oeste de Minas
Estrada de Ferro Oeste de Minas
The Estrada de Ferro Oeste de Minas was a narrow gauge railway located in the southeastern Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. At its peak the railway's route totalled...
, a narrow gauge railway.