ABSTRACT
Family farming has an expressive participation in the national economic scenario, being the main responsible for the production of food that is made available for the consumption of the Brazilian population. Small rural properties generally have management difficulties, especially in relation to cost control and planning. Rural accounting proves to be an essential tool for the management of rural properties, even those considered small, significantly assisting in decision making. The objective of this study is to propose a cost planning and control model applicable to small rural properties that develop family agriculture. For that, a case study was carried out in a small property, located in the interior of Rio Grande do Norte. Data were obtained through semi-structured interviews with the producer. From the data collected and analyzed, the variable costing method was suggested, and the necessary steps to implement it. With the application of the suggested model, we arrived at the result of the activity that most contributes to the property, being cattle, which compared to the others, presented a higher contribution margin.
Keywords: Rural accounting. Control. Variable Costing.