October 12, 2006

Brazilian soy planting to drop 5 million acres in 2007

Soy production would fall more than 5 million acres in the coming year in Brazil, according to South American Soy LLC, a global agricultural production, investment and management company.

Factors said to have impacted soy production include poor economic growth and credit issues. While the south-eastern states of Minas Gerais and Sao Paulo would record the maximum decline in terms of percentage owing to strong competition from sugar cane mills, Mato Grosso and the center-west region, would see a drop in soy to 2.6 million acres from the previous crop , according to Philip Corzine, general manager at South American Soy.

However, the recently developed North and the north-east, would see abandoned acreage or acreage returned to cattle production at a higher rate than the more developed regions, said Corzine.

Incidentally, the report anticipated a slight rebound in yields on improved weather, up 11 percent from last year's 44.6 bushels an acre. However, Corzine explained lower prices and lack of credit would result in lower levels of inputs put on acreage in Brazil this year, not allowing farms to reach maximum yield potential.