Sebrae Minas Gerais Agency – Sustainability: Belo Horizonte startup bets on digital solutions for dairy farming
- Aline Reis (Stark)
- Sep 25
- 3 min read
📰 News originally published by the Sebrae Minas Gerais Agency, on the official Entrepreneurship Culture portal. The report highlights how ESGpec, a startup from Belo Horizonte, has been investing in innovative digital solutions to support dairy farming towards a more sustainable future. LINK TO THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE.
Winner of the Sebrae Women in Business Award, entrepreneur brings a free tool for rural producers to assess their sustainability levels and carbon footprint.
Innovation in the countryside is increasingly taking center stage with digital solutions aimed at dairy farming. ESGpec, a startup founded in Belo Horizonte in 2022 and with solutions launched to the market in 2024, has developed free tools that allow rural producers to monitor sustainable practices and calculate the carbon footprint of their farms.
Winner of the 2025 Sebrae Women in Business Award, in the Science and Technology category, co-founder Heloise Duarte explains that the proposal is to bring the countryside closer to ESG practices – Environmental, Social and Governance – offering accessible, simple resources tailored to the Brazilian reality.
One of the solutions is PEC CALC, a carbon footprint calculator developed based on global guidelines and validated methodologies, adapted to Brazil’s conditions. The tool provides data such as manure management, pastures, herd, fuel and energy consumption, and animal diet ingredients, allowing for simulations and environmental impact diagnostics.
According to Heloise, in addition to measuring emissions, producers can identify areas with greater potential for reduction, adopt mitigation strategies, and increase business efficiency. “We want to show that ESG in the field is not a seven-headed monster. Our mission is to democratize access to sustainable practices,” she says.
The solutions are part of the project “Regenerative Awakening: Integrated, Balanced, Biodiverse” and already reach around 300 farms in six Brazilian states, with support from more than 100 trained technicians.
Technology in favor of the countryside
Heloise’s journey in livestock began on her family’s farm. Today, her experience in technology aligns with her purpose of connecting producers to transformative digital solutions. ESGpec operates under a B2B model, meaning a company provides products or services to other companies, serving producers and cooperatives, and counts on the strategic support of specialists such as Luiz Gustavo Pereira, professor at the University of Copenhagen and an international reference in livestock emissions.
In addition to being recognized in the Sebrae Women in Business Award, the company has also participated in InovAtiva de Impacto, Capital Empreendedor, Inova Cerrado, and the Sebrae Startups Award.
Next steps
The future of ESGpec goes beyond environmental metrics. The startup plans to include indicators related to the physical and mental well-being of rural workers, an area still little explored in the Brazilian countryside. “We want to broaden the view of sustainability, which goes far beyond environmental practices. Quality of life in the countryside also needs to be part of this agenda,” Heloise emphasizes.
Sustainability on the radar of small businesses
A survey by Sebrae Minas reveals how small businesses in Minas Gerais understand and adopt ESG practices. According to the study, the concept is still little known among them: about 67% say they have superficial or no knowledge of the topic. Only one-third say they know and understand the meaning of the term.
The data also show that most entrepreneurs already adopt measures for energy savings (83%) and reduced use of plastic (73%), in addition to recycling and material reuse initiatives (60%) and water conservation (50%). More than 90% consider it important (28%) or very important (64%) for companies to take responsibility for the effects they cause on the environment and society. In addition, 62% of respondents said that, in the next three years, they will prioritize actions to reduce environmental impact.
More information about Heloise’s sustainability business at:@esg.pec
