'Historic bumper harvest' forecast for Brazil - report

Brazil is forecast to have a "historic bumper harvest" with grain production estimated at over 328 million tonnes for 2024/2025, according to a new report.

The National Supply Company (Conab), the Brazilian government’s food supply agency, is projecting a 10% increase on the previous harvest, with an additional 30.6 million tonnes of grain to be harvested.

The agency said that the revised forecast is being driven by increased soya bean, corn and rice harvests.

Conab president Edegar Pretto highlighted the significant growth in the planted area in Brazil, which is expected to reach 81.6 million hectares, an increase of 2.1% compared to the previous harvest.

The agency also pointed to the recovery in the average productivity of the crops, which is projected at 4,023kg/ha.

Conab said that if the outlook contained in its sixth survey of the 2024/2025 grain harvest is confirmed at the end of the cycle, this will set a new record for production.

In the 2024/2025 harvest soya beans production is estimated to reach 167.4 million tonnes, 13.3% higher than the previous harvest.

After a slower start to the harvest due to planting delays and excessive rainfall in January, the reduction in rainfall in February led to a significant increase in the harvested area.

The soya bean harvest in Brazil dictates the pace of progress for the planting of the second corn crop, which has already reached 83.1% of the expected area.

The report noted that the rate is below the last cycle in a similar period, but higher than the average of the last five years.

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Conab expects the area of ​​the second corn crop to grow by 2%, reaching approximately 16.75 million hectares.

The expected estimate for total corn production of 122.8 million tonnes, an increase of 6% compared to 2023/2024.

Rice also saw a 6.5% increase in the planted area, reaching 1.7 million hectares. If current conditions continue, Conab said that the production estimate rises to 12.1 million tonnes.

Beans are also expected to register a slight increase in total production of 1.5% in the 2024/25 harvest, estimated at 3.29 million tonnes.

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