“…Microeconomic theory claims that ‘the optimal size for soybean production is located in large areas, in which, due to gains in scale, the efficiency in the use of resources and the productivity per unit area reach their maximum’ (Bazotti et al, 2017, p. 122). Among the main reasons that limit competitiveness of smallholders in soy production, literature points out: The crop demands intensive and continuous investments, in which increase in scale of production reduces the cost per area; technological issues, associated with agricultural machines and implements with higher yield per unit of work, lead the farmer to expand cultivated area, seeking greater investment efficiency; it is a standardized product, with an internationally defined price, based on global trade and controlled by transnational companies (Fernández, 2007; Setrini et al, 2014; Wesz Jr., 2014).…”