A study conducted by the Federal University of Lavras (UFLA) and other institutions found that the El Niño phenomenon caused a significant decrease in the production of Amazon nuts in 2017. The drop in production was attributed to reduced local rainfall and increased temperatures in the Pacific Ocean, caused by the El Niño event in 2015/2016. The researchers suggest that further studies should be conducted to explore methods to reduce the impact of climate events on nut production, such as genetic improvement of Brazil nut trees.