Growers, association directors, and marketing analysts I interviewed in Mato Grosso tell me soybean production this year will be down slightly or about the same as last year, if the harvest occurs without any major obstacles. Mato Grosso's soy yields are expected to be 10% less than last year, but southern Brazilian states are seeing much better yield potentials due to increased rainfall this year. Last year, Mato Grosso farmers produced 17 million metric tons of soybeans. On Friday, during a field day, heavy rains fell most of the day. The field day was held on one of the farms owned by the Amaggi Group, which farms more than 248,000 acres in Brazil. The Amaggi Group is owned by the Mato Grosso state governor Blairo Maggi. Discussions involved efforts to encourage growers to collaborate on their plantings and rust control to alleviate problems of rust spore contamination crossing into each others' fields. Because irrigated soybean seed production in the south during winter months breeds rust and carries it northward to vulnerable early plantations, the Brazilian government passed a recent law that forbids winter soybean production. Mato Grosso is now divided into two regions with different 90 day soy planting prohibition. Also, I discovered the current Brazilian agricultural economic crisis is going to force farmers to work together more and professionalize their operations. Those that are better managers will succeed, and those that have poor management and production skills will be out of production. Organizations and cooperatives are forming to address the current problem, and most believe that this crisis could have positive impacts for the long term of Brazil soy production. The days of amateur soy production are over. A new professionalism and creativity is emerging in the heart of Brazils largest soy producing region. Pedro Boltere Schneider, a Mato Grosso agricultural consultant, said the key to controlling rust and having a successful crop is early planting, around September. "Larger farms tend to be able to plant earlier than smaller farms. October/November planting is more common. This year, because of drought during the first part of the season, many growers had to either replant or plant later, which puts them at greater risk for rust and increases the number of treatments," Schneider said. Schneider noted that in November there was very little rain. However, from December -January, rain fell almost daily with a total rainfall of 600 mm (24 inches)! "This inhibited proper rust control. For many growers rust was not controlled which caused greater infestation in other farms," Schneider said. Following this intense rain period, there was not a drop of rain for 15 days. Roots were shallow due to earlier rains, so plants suffered during this dry period. It has been raining everyday for the past week, which once again is creating a challenge for rust control. The fields that Pedro manages are scheduled for their first curative spray. "Time is running out for effective control and rain is predicted for the next 3 days," Schneider said. |
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