Embrapa Develops Rice Resistant to Magnaporthe oryzae Through Genetic-Editing
In August, the country’s exports totaled US$ 2.45 billion, an increase of 40% compared to the same period in 2023. “Exports of grains and products from the soybean oil industry continues to be conditioned by a moderate pace of sales and fixations“, highlighted CIARA-CEC. (CIARA-CEC)
In the 2024/25 season, corn area is expected to be 6.3 million ha, a drop of 17.1% compared to the previous season. This is due to the greater proliferation of pests, mainly the leafhopper, and the drought. “After the rains, early planting is expected to become more widespread in the central agricultural area,” said the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange. (Buenos Aires Grain Exchange)
Embrapa develops rice resistant to rice blast (Magnaporthe oryzae) through genetic-editing. The editing is done using the CRISPR/Cas9 technique and is being applied to the BRSMG Curinga cultivar. “We identified a group of proteins potentially involved in this susceptibility and selected some corresponding genes to perform the knockout (removing the function of a specific gene, which stops producing the functional protein) using CRISPR”, said researcher Angela Mehta. The technology is still in the testing phase. (Embrapa Genetic Resources and Biotechnology)
A state of emergency has been declared in 20 municipalities in the State of Goiás due to fires, with a duration of 180 days. In addition, a bill was sent to the Legislative Assembly to reinforce monitoring, prevent and combat criminals fires. (Government of the State of Goiás)
The 2024/25 soybean harvest is estimated at 169.9 million tonnes, an increase of 11.8% compared to the previous season. The planted area is to increase by 1.6%, reaching 46.2 million ha. “The growth in area is lower than in recent years, due to the expectation of positive operating margins but below the average observed in the last decade”, said consultancy firm Céleres. (Céleres)
From January 1st to August 31st, more than 131,000 fire hotspots were recorded in the country, an increase of 48% compared to the same period in 2023. In August, fire hotspots reached 68,000, the worst result since 2010, with around 90,000. As of the 26th, around 167 cities have already declared a state of emergency and more than 4 million people have been affected by the fires. Of the states that have declared state of emergency, highlights: States of São Paulo (51), Mato Grosso do Sul (35), Acre (22), etc. (Inpe)
The country is facing the worst drought recorded since 1950. Around 58% of Brazilian territory is being affected, corresponding to 5 million km². (Cemaden)
In July, wheat milling in Biobío was around 14,269 tonnes, an increase of 56.9% compared to the same period last year, due to the greater processing of wheat products and by-products. From July of 2023 to July this year, the total number of products originating from wheat was 11,395 tonnes (+57.3), and by-products totaled 2,874 tonnes (+55.2%). (INE)
Rice production costs will increase by 4% due to the price of diesel. With the increase in ACPM (price indicator related to diesel oil), production costs are impacted, due to the use of machinery that uses this fuel. “One hectare of rice consumes 24 to 25 gallons of diesel. This includes tractors and others equipment, so the price is transferred to production costs, which will increase by 4%,” said Rafael Hernández, president of Fedearroz. (Fedearroz)
Brazil and Mexico strengthen meat trade relations. “With imports, they (Mexico) meet the domestic demand for a certain type of meat. Thus, they gain scale to export other cuts, according to the current strategy,” said Lhais Sparvoli, director of International Relations at the Brazilian Association of Meat Exporting Industries. (Abiec)
The country is the second largest exporter of vegetables, such as peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, etc. In addition, it is the ninth largest exporter of food, having 14 free trade agreements with 51 countries. (Sader)
In August, cattle slaughter had a drop of 12% compared to the previous month, totaling around 1.47 million heads slaughtered since January. However, exports registered a slight increase, with 221.69 million kg this year. (Senacsa)
The government will provide US$ 887.9 million to the agricultural and irrigation sectors in 2025, an increase of 19.6% on what was invested in 2024. “This is a record amount of resources allocated to the agricultural sector compared to the last five years, which reveals the priority that the government gives to the promotion of agricultural activities”, said Ángel Manero, Minister of Agriculture. (Midagri)
Unifrutti announced the acquisition of Verfrut, a fruit producer and exporter. With this, it “consolidates its portfolio of grapes, cherries, apples and blueberries, becoming one of the largest producers of table grapes and cherries in the world… and an important fruit platform in Chile and Peru”, said the company. (Unifrutti)
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