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 Sorriso is a city of 50,000
people in the center of Mato Grosso.
It is 432 km (270 miles) north of
Cuiabá, the state capital of Mato Grosso. The name Sorriso in Portuguese
means “ Smile”. It is a friendly farm town in the center of the new
frontier. The population has doubled in the past 7 years. It is home to many families from southern Brazil
of German and Italian descendants. They have migrated north
in search of cheap land and new business opportunities. Sorriso has an
active “Downtown” business area including a new shopping mall complete with
Multi-Plex Cinema.
Sorriso is at the epicenter of the largest productive flat spot on the
planet. Its elevation is 1100 ft above sea level. With the exception of
slope near river systems, the region is table top flat. Sorriso county now
plants above 700,000 acres of soybeans annually. The region is then double
cropped with either Corn or Cotton.
Sorriso is home to Bunge´s 8
million bushel elevator
(click for
larger image) located 10 miles to the north of the city. This
elevator is Brazil's largest inland receiving station.
Considering the city did not exist in 1985, the amount of growth that has
been seen in this region is staggering.
Sorriso is now served
by 1 commercial air carrier Monday through Friday with connections
to Sinop and
Cuiabá
** NOTE: The County of Sorriso produced 3.4% of
all soybeans grown in Brazil making it number one in volume.
** Photo courtesy of John Haskell.
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