May 6, 2009

As the harvest of Argentina's 2008-09 soy crop advances, crop yields continue to disappoint due to the drought's damage, the Agriculture Secretariat said in its weekly crop report Tuesday (May 5).

In the Bolivar district of Buenos Aires, the dry weather is allowing rapid harvest progress. The early soy has been almost completely harvested and farmers are starting to harvest the late soy. So far, the late soy has shown low average yields, the secretariat said.

In March, the secretariat forecast soy production at 37 million to 39 million tonnes, but recalled that forecast immediately after releasing it due to what it called "errors."

The Buenos Aires Cereals Exchange forecasts production of just 34 million tonnes, down sharply from the early expectations of about 50 million tonnes.

As of April 28, 76 percent of the 2008-09 soy crop had been harvested, up eight percent from the same date last year.

As of April 28, 73 percent of the 2008-09 corn crop had been harvested, up 16 percent from this point last season.

In the Pehuajo district of Buenos Aires province the harvest is progressing slowly as most harvesters are being used on the soy crop, the secretariat said.

In the San Francisco district of Cordoba province, yields vary widely from between three tonnes and seven tonnes a hectare.

The corn crop was seriously affected by drought this season. The secretariat forecasts final production at 12.5 million to 13.8 million tonnes, the smallest crop in over five years.