February 6, 2010

Brazil starts soy shipments to Russia

The first shipment of 24,400 tonnes of Brazilian soy has left for Russia this week, the Brazilian Agriculture Ministry said Thursday (Feb 4).

The ministry said another ship was being loaded for departure.

Technical barriers imposed by the Russian government on the import of Brazilian products were removed at a recent meeting attended by representatives from both countries in Berlin in January, according to the Secretary of Agricultural Defense Ignatius Kroetz.

Russia has invested in chicken and pork production and needs soy for feed. As Brazil is a major supplier, there is a great chance that export will grow substantially, said Kroetz.

The latest survey from the National Supply Company (Conab) indicates Brazil is expected to produce 65 million tonnes of soy in 2009-10 harvest season, about eight million more than in 2008-09 season.

Approximately 26 million tonnes of the total output will be exported to other countries.