Brazil Soy Strong Despite Reduced Area

Avatar for Matt Hopkins By Scott C. Lucas|14 May 2007

Ideal weather have helped farmers take advantage of strong international soybean prices, which should help alleviate them following several years of debt caused by drought and low prices over the past three seasons. With the Brazilian soybean harvest now 95% complete, expectations are high for next year’s crop, which USDA-FAS currently projects to reach 61 MMT. This is also due to the major shift to corn in the US, as growers there take advantage of the upswing in prices brought about by ethanol. This is likely to lead to the clearing of new land in the expansion areas of center-west and northern Brazil. USDA-FAS projects the area to rebound by 4% to 21.9 million Ha.