May 4, 2006

Brazil 2005/06 official soy estimate down to 55.2 million tonnes

The National Commodities Supply Corp (Conab), lowered its official estimate for the Brazilian 2005/06 soy crop by 500,000 tonnes to 55.2 million tonnes on Wednesday (May 3).

Conab attributed the drop to problems with dry weather in Parana and Bahia during the important bean-forming phase in February, along with Asian soybean rust and excessive rainfall during harvest in Mato Grosso.

The Brazilian soy market has been expecting a reduction in the soy harvest because of weather conditions and lower-than-expected yields in Parana and Mato Grosso.

Soy farmers spent less money this year on fertilisers, pesticides, fungicides and herbicides, so a significant portion of their soy fields were lost to weeds, Asian soybean rust and insect diseases, according to private agribusiness consultancy Agroconsult.

Brazil is the world's second largest soy producer.