Conab predicts growth of 2.5% for brazil's grain crop

The 2019/2020 grain crop in Brazil, which began in July 2019 and will end in June, is expected to reach 248 million tons, a 2.5% increase compared to the previous cycle, according to a survey released by the National Supply Company (Conab) on Wednesday (8). It is expected that 64.2 million hectares will be cultivated, up 1.5% compared to the previous harvest. Soybean production, which has been maintaining the growth trend in the area this season, is also expected to grow production by 2.6% compared to the past cycle, reaching 122.2 million tons. According to the government, the climatic conditions, which presented some instability at the beginning of summer planting in most producing regions, are now with normalized rhythms and with good expectation of productivity. Conab's survey takes into account the crop calendar, which begins in July and ends June of the following year. Unlike the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), which considers what was produced during the 12 months of the year. Exports boost corn As for the first harvest corn, the forecast is an increase of 1.1% in the sowing area, totaling 4.15 million hectares and a production of 26.6 million tons, with a gain of 3.8% over 2018/19. In favor of this performance, there are factors such as the increase in Brazilian exports of cereal and in the domestic market, derived from the demand for containment and ethanol production, even despite competition with soybeans. Other cultures Cotton, despite the trend of significant area growth in the last two harvests, showed a positive variation of less than 2.7%, reaching 1.6 million hectares. The production of the lump is expected to reach 4.1 million tons and that of the plume by 2.8 million tons. The bean's first crop figures show a 1.9% reduction in the area compared to last season. The crop also loses space for soybeans and corn that have better profitability. Wheat, whose crop is finished, is also expected to reach 5.15 million tons and a reduction of 5% compared to 2018. Rice is another that suffers this competition, with a tendency to reduce 0.7% in the area and production of 10.5 million tons.