Dry weather to help harvest in main Brazil soy areas

 

 

A spell of dry weather in the coming weeks should help Brazil's 2009-10 soy harvest, private weather service Somar said on Friday (March 5).

 

The weather will be favourable in most of Brazil's main soy-producing regions in the coming weeks, said Celso Oliveira, a Somar meteorologist.

 

Rain has often hampered farmers this crop season in soy-growing regions from the main centre-west soy belt through to the south of Brazil.

 

Oliveira said that Mato Grosso, Brazil's top soy-producing state, should see mainly dry weather until March 15.

 

Elsewhere in Parana, Brazil's No. 2 soy-producing state, and Rio Grande do Sul, the No. 3 soy producer, the weather remain mainly dry during the same period, he said.

 

Oliveira warned, however, that the northern part of Mato Grosso is likely to see regular rains. Rain will slow the harvest in regions including Sinop and Lucas do Rio Verde until around March 20, he said.

 

But Oliveira downplayed the risk. Farmers in northern Mato Grosso started to harvest their beans early this year. They have already harvested a good part of their crop, he added.

 

Leonardo Menezes, an analyst at agricultural consultancy Celeres, said Brazil's soy crop should hit 65.7 million tonnes in 2009-10, up 13% from last season.

 

The recent wet weather has caused concerns about soy rust. But it is too early to assess losses, he said.