THE IDENTITY BUILDING STRATEGIES AROUND THE GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION OF “THE SWEETEST BANANA OF BRAZIL” FROM CORUPÁ/SC REGION

Resumo

Since 2002 the city of Corupá/SC has been known as the banana capital of Santa Catarina, whose production is associated with ways of doing and cultural practices of the regional population. Recently, work began on valuing banana production, driven by the desire for a Geographical Indication for the region, which was obtained in 2016. Considering the above, this work aims to identify the strategies used to support the narrative about the territorial identity of the Region of Corupá/SC considering its recent process of recognition by the Denomination of Origin “The sweetest banana of Brazil”. For data collection, used up bibliographical review, interviews, analysis of advertising materials and information disseminated through the social networks of the Association of Banana Producers of Corupá (ASBANCO). It is concluded that the strategies used to support the narrative about territorial identity are very varied and their main focus is on gastronomic elements and encouragement of local tourism. It is noticed that the singularity of the region and its product, the banana, was built from a narrative that focuses on social representations about the territory shared by the actors involved in it. It is considered that the work of rescuing and building territorial identities, such as that carried out in the Region of Corupá/SC, is essential because it is not enough for a territory to have tangible and intangible potentials, it is necessary to have a network of actors that enable its realization, establishing among themselves relationships that transcend the scope of a production chain and act to foster and strengthen social capital and strategies that ensure the region's territorial development.