April 24, 2013

Brazil's Mato Grosso to produce more corn in 2012-13

After rain boosted yields, Brazil's Mato Grosso farmers will produce more corn as a second crop than expected a month ago.

This is according to researcher Instituto Mato- Grossense de Economia Agropecuaria.

The harvest in the state, Brazil's second-biggest corn grower behind Parana, is predicted to be 14.6 million tonnes in 2012-13, from a previous outlook of 13.3 million tonnes, Cuiaba, Brazil-based IMEA wrote in an online report dated Monday (Apr 22). That compares with last year's record 15.6 million tonnes.

Favourable rainfall during the corn-growing season prompted a crop survey by IMEA that led it to increase the yield outlook by 10%, the researcher wrote. The harvest would be the second-biggest ever, IMEA said.

Most corn in Mato Grosso is planted as a second crop after soy. The outlook for Mato Grosso corn yields was raised to 88 60-kilogramme bags (5.28 tonnes) per hectare (2.47 acres) from 80 bags per hectare in March, and compared with 104 bags in 2012, according to IMEA.

For the Medio-Norte region, which grows more than half of Mato Grosso's second-crop soy, the outlook for yields was lifted to 91 bags per hectare from 83 bags forecast last month.