From a city of 7,800 inhabitants to Forbes: meet the Santa Catarina woman who leads the R$848 billion sector

Born in Ipumirim, a city of just 7,800 inhabitants in the west of Santa Catarina, Tania Zanella is one of the people from Santa Catarina on the second list of "100 Powerful Women in Agribusiness", by Forbes Brasil.

Graduated in law, she is included in the ranking due to a pioneering trajectory. She is the first woman to preside over the Organization of Brazilian Cooperatives (OCB), an entity that represents 4,400 cooperatives from different sectors. Together, they recorded R$848 billion in revenue in 2025, of which R$487 billion comes from agriculture.

Tania began her career at Sistema OCB in 2008, as an analyst. Over the course of 17 years, he held management positions until assuming the presidency of the institution, created in 1969, in December 2025.

Today she also presides over the Instituto Pensar Agropecuária (IPA), a body that provides technical support to the Agricultural Parliamentary Front (FPA) in the National Congress.

Brazil has 4,400 cooperatives distributed across 3,425 municipalities, according to the Yearbook of Brazilian Cooperativism 2026 (AnuárioCoop), based on data from 2025. Together, the entities bring together 29 million members and generate more than 610,000 direct jobs.

This is the second time that Tania, recognized for defending female participation in corporate governance, appears in the Forbes survey. The executive was part of the first edition in 2021.

In February 2026, the magazine also included her in the list of the 16 Most Powerful Women in Brazil.

"Being on this list is an opportunity to give visibility to the work of women who make cooperativism happen every day. We still have room to move forward, by expanding opportunities and encouraging more and more women to occupy decision-making positions", he declared.

International Year of Women Farmers

The second edition of the “100 Powerful Women in Agribusiness” list was published five years after the first, in honor of International Rural Women's Day, celebrated on October 15th.

Unlike other Forbes Brasil rankings, which usually bring together between 10 and 15 names, the selection highlights 100 women from different regions and areas of activity, as a way of recognizing female participation in agribusiness.