Brazil soybean plantings slowest in 6 years at 3% complete – AgriCensus

7 de outubro 2019 | Na Mídia

Dry weather has meant soybean plantings in Brazil are at their slowest start since the 2013/14 season with just 3.1% of the anticipated area planted as of Thursday, meaning next year’s soybean harvest is likely to hit the market later than normal, consultants Agrural said.

That figure is up from the prior week’s completion rate of 0.9%, but well behind last year’s efforts of 9.5%.

“The delay to last year and the five-year average continues, as rainfall remains uneven and many areas of [Parana and Mato Grosso] and other states still lack sufficient moisture to ensure safe planting and germination,” Agrural said.

And although last week’s rain showers improved planting prospects in Mato Grosso – Brazil’s biggest producing state – progress has continued to fall further behind seasonal norms.

As of Friday, plantings reached just 6.7% in Mato Grosso, which produces around a quarter of all soybeans planted in Brazil, according to the state food statistics agency IMEA.

That compares with the five-year average of 9.2%, meaning the lag has stretched to 2.5 percentage points versus a lag of one point last week.

Dry weather is causing farmers to delay planting across most of the country, a dynamic that may mean soybeans hit the market towards the end of February and could also have a knock-on effect for planting Brazil’s second crop.

“The expected improvement in rainfall in October, coupled with the very rapid planting capacity of most Brazilian producers, tends to minimise the delay observed in this early season,” Agrural said.

“However, the rains need to get more regular as soon as possible”.

In the current marketing year, Brazil’s 2018/19 crop started to hit the market as early as January as favourable planting conditions meant 12% of the crop was in the ground by this time last year.

Last week, Deral, which is the food statistics agency for the number two soybean producing state of Parana, said soybean planting had occurred on just 10% of land, compared with almost 30% at this time last year.