Notícias

Rio Grande do Sul is the only big Brazilian state which should register an increase in the production of soybean, possibly becoming able to reach 19 million of tons, with an increase superior to 10% in comparison with the previous crop. The projection was made today in the morning by the consultant André Pessôa during the 30th Soybean National Forum, which occurred in the central auditorium of the 20th Expodireto Cotrijal.

Talking to a crowded room, the specialist highlighted that the National Company of Supply (Conab) published another production bulletin, lowering the national production, but stating the Rio Grande do Sul with 18.6 million of tons, 9% more than the previous year.

Pessôa confirmed that the country will have a lower crop and it confronts a challenging scenery for this year commercialization. “Few times I have been disappointed with so many uncertainties as the ones which have arisen since the middle of last year”, he highlighted. In his opinion, Brazil had an advantage with the commercial war between the United States and China in 2018, situation that cannot be repeated this year.

In the last year, according to the director-partner of Agroconsult, Brasil exported “extraordinary” 83.6 million of tons, an amount which will not be repeated this year. “The war between the two countries can end, which will represent the fall in the Brazilian exports. While the United States will have stocks of 22 million of tons, Brazil will reduce meaningfully its own”, he said.

Another advantage for the producers of Rio Grande do Sul is related to the rate of sales. According to Pessôa, Brazil has already negotiated around 50% of the crop, on which the leader is Mato Grosso with 60%, followed by Paraná with 27%. “Rio Grande do Sul is with a lot of soybean to be sold and that can be an advantage”, he said, highlighting that, in an environment of uncertainties as it is the current one, the risks are also elevated.

The technologic revolutions of the culture

In the opinion of the agronomist and professor Elmar Luiz Floss, also a panelist of the Forum, the soybean was the culture which has grown more in the world between 1976 and 2017 (512.86%), being the most important culture in Brazil and in Rio Grande do Sul and today the largest source of plant protein.

He mentioned the work of Conab with ten important cultures of the country, cultivated in 60.223 million of hectares in the crops of 2017/2018, of which 35.149 million were of hectares with soybean. The total production of that year was of 223.7 million of tons, of which the soybean had an amount of 119.3 million of tons. Concerning the productivity, the soybean passed from 1,628 kg/ha in the agricultural year of 1976/77 to 3,396 kg/ha in the crop of 2017/2018.

“Could not we have advanced more"”, asked Floss to the people in the Forum. As an answer, he mentioned that entities and cooperatives have made their part through technological revolution, such as the soil correction and the implantation of the direct planting. “Where there is straw, there is not erosion. The biggest heritage of the producer is the soil and not the betterments and the machinery”, he said.

Other revolutions, in his point of view, would be the rational and balanced green manure and the precision agriculture. “We are living the agriculture of information and of the digital era. This is the way of the future”, he highlighted.

The forum counted with the presence of the president of Cotrijal, Nei Mânica, the vice-president of the cooperative, Enio Schroeder, the president of FecoAgro, Paulo Pires, and the president of CCGL, Caio Vianna. The ex-presidents of Fecotrigo, Odacir Klein and Rui Polidoro Pinto, were honored with a sign for the 30 years of the Soybean National Forum.

Source: Press Office of Expodireto Cotrijal