Brazil bean crop to hit record 118.9 million mt: Agroconsult

Brazil’s 2017/18 soybean harvest should produce almost 119 million mt, according to Brazil consultants Agroconsult, despite a delay to the crop and some regions suffering from periods of drought.

Speaking after a Brazilian crop tour, Agroconsult said average productivity should reach 56.5 bags per hectare (3.39 mt/ha), up 1.2% on the previous year’s yields on better technology and favourable weather.

"At the beginning of the harvest, there was concern about La Nina, which did not materialise. Irregular rain brought delay in planting (and) climatic events affected important production areas, which indicated a smaller harvest, but in the end, we had production and productivity above expectations," explained André Pessoa, managing partner of Agroconsult.

"If the weather had repeated performance or was as regular as last year, the Brazilian soybean crop would have gone to 120 million tons,” he added.

Only the crops of Sao Paulo, Parana, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul did not achieve productivity records, according to the consultants.

The projection of 118.9 million mt is one of the highest on the market and compares with USDA estimates of 113 million mt.

However, several private analysts, including consultants AgRural and the vegetable oil association of Brazil Abiove, expect this year's crop to exceed the 114 million mt harvested last year.

The so-called Rally of Safra tour took place between January and March this year.