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Yields, production up in 2019-20?

James Thompson, Author

September 13, 2019

2 Min Read

Brazilian soybean planting for 2019-20 starts in most states this week, as the no-soy rule—to protect against overwintering rust—is lifted on Sept. 15. The top three of those states are Mato Grosso, Parana and Rio Grande do Sul, where continued dryness might slow the start of planting, but where this season’s soy production is slated to brush up against the record crop of 2017-18.

Those three states are, in order, also Brazil’s top soybean producers. The state’s ag economics institute says the soybean area in Mato Grosso will be up .6% to 24.2 million acres. Yields are forecast up as well, to 50.1 bushels per acre.

Meanwhile, No.2 soybean state Parana will expand its 2019-20 soybean area by a full percentage point, to 13.5 million acres. The state Agricultural Economics Department, assuming better weather than last time around, meanwhile, puts yields up some 21% over the climactically testy 2018-29 season, to 44.4 bushels per acre.

Third-place soybean producer Rio Grande do Sul, bordering on Uruguay and Argentina, is set to increase soy acreage by 2%, to 14.8 million acres, with estimated yields at 49.25 bushels per acre, say state officials.

The states are out front in their forecasts, but the Brazilian federal government won’t hazard any guesses on the 2019-20 crop until next month. In the meantime, USDA officials suggest that Brazil’s total soybean production for the crop that will start going into the ground on Sunday, Sept. 15, stands at 124 million metric tons, of which 75 million will compete against your crop in world markets.

So begins a new season. Brazilian producers are counting on a good weather year and dealing with higher nominal production costs. And they’re looking forward to getting the planters out into the fields.

The opinions of the author are not necessarily those of Farm Futures or Farm Progress. 

About the Author(s)

James Thompson

Author

James Thompson grew up on farms in Illinois and Tennessee and got his start in Ag communications when he won honorable mention in a 4-H speech contest. He graduated from University of Illinois and moved to Tocantins, Brazil and began farming. Over his career he has written several articles on South American agriculture for a number of publications around the world. He also edits www.cropspotters.com, a site focusing on Brazilian agriculture.

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