Soybean Production in Argentina Is Expected to Increase in the 2024/25 Season
Country is facing a general worker’s strike on May 09th. A national strike was called by the General Confederation of Labor and gained support from the country’s main unions. General Secretary of the State Workers’ Association, Rodolfo Aguiar, confirmed that the strike by public employees “is almost total”, affecting approximately 97% of the category. (CGT)
Soybean production is expected to increase in the 2024/25 season, driven by the expansion of the second harvest. Production is estimated at 51 million tonnes, an increase of 1.5 million tonnes when compared to the previous year. This increase is mainly attributed to the increase in the planted area, expected to reach 17.8 million hectares. (USDA)
Central Bank put into circulation on May 07th new banknotes, worth 10 thousand pesos (approximately US$ 11). According to the Central Bank, the distribution of banknotes will occur progressively in bank agencies and ATMs across the country. So far, the highest value banknote available in Argentina had been the 2,000 pesos note, which entered circulation in May of 2023. (Central Bank of Argentina)
According to the Department of Agriculture of the State of Goiás and the Brazilian Rice Industry Association, there is no risk of rice and beans shortages in the State, even with the calamity situation in the State of Rio Grande do Sul. “This lower risk in the State of Goiás is because our production of rice and beans has been high in recent years”, said the Secretary of Agriculture, Pedro Leonardo. (Seapa; Abiarroz)
Agricultural fair of Maringá, State of Paraná, the Expoingá expects to exceed US$ 195 million in business. Event takes place between May 9th and 19th. (Rural Society of Maringá)
Provisional measure is being prepared by the Federal Government to import rice due to the heavy rains in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, according to the Minister of Agriculture, Carlos Fávaro. The measure may come into force after approval of “calamity situation status” in the State by the National Congress. The matter is being analyzed by the Senate. “A provisional measure is already being prepared authorizing the National Supply Company to make a purchase of around 1 million tonnes”, said the minister. (MAPA)
It is estimated that the restoration of public infrastructure hit by heavy rains in the State of Rio Grande do Sul should cost at least US$ 3.69 billion. According to the State’s governor, Eduardo Leite, the estimate is based on “initial calculations”. (Agência Brasil)
Nestlé, the largest coffee buyer in Brazil, plans to invest US$ 194 million by 2026 in expanding production capacity, innovations and increasing sales of Nescafé [the company’s coffee brand] products. (Nestlé)
When the Chilean Citrus Committee was created in 2010, national exports of citrus products reached 139 thousand tonnes. Thirteen years later, in 2023, total shipments reached 400,420 tonnes, which is 49% more than in the previous season, when the industry exported 268.1 thousand tonnes. (Chilean Citrus Committee)
After a drop in 2023, greater banana exports are estimated in 2024. Colombia, the fifth largest banana supplier in the world, intends to increase exports of the fruit by 5% in the period, according to the president of the Colombian Association of Banana Farmers, Emerson Aguirre. (Augura)
Coffee production in 2024 will depend on the intensity of La Niña, according to Germán Bahamón, general manager of the National Federation of Coffee Farmers. “What we don’t want is for La Niña to stay for a long time”, Bahamón said. “We can have a very good coffee harvest because our coffee cultivars are resistant against rust and climate change”. (FNC)
Drought is affecting the south region and coffee farmers expect a drop of up to 30%. Lack of rain is putting almost 80% of the country’s coffee crops at risk. According to Ismael Gómez, representative of the Union of Independent Coffee Farmers, under current conditions, production in southern Mexico should not exceed 500,000 bags, compared to an average of 6 million which is normally produced. “Most farmers have up to one and a half hectares, but the vast majority have one hectare and subsist on their product”. (Unión de Productores Independientes de Café)
Brazil and Paraguay have signed an agreement that sets tariffs for the Itaipu hydroelectric power plant in the coming years, without any increase for Brazilian consumers, and which foresees a reduction in values from 2026. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Paraguay)
According to the Minister of Agriculture, Carlos Giménez, smuggling and high temperatures resulted in an excessive increase in the price of tomatoes on the local market. According to Giménez, in May production should reach just 10% of what had previously been estimated. (Ministry of Agriculture)
Minister of Agriculture, Fernando Mattos, said that Uruguay is on “alert” due to flooding in southern Brazil. “We must generate much more powerful mechanisms of resilience and adaptation to the reality of climate change, which has a growing impact… Climate change is changing our entire way of thinking. We know that we are going to have more and more climate variability, more droughts, more floods.” (Ministry of Agriculture)
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