Slaughterhouses lose US$ 20 million – US$ 25 million per business day in Brazil
GDP retraction could reach 3% in 2023, double what was previously estimated, because of the unprecedented drought, that aggravates the crisis in the country. In the previous week, the government granted to export companies a delay in corn shipments to help them meet commitments to international buyers and secure feed supplies for poultry and livestock. (Itaú Unibanco; EconViews Consulting)
Fires destroy wetlands, that correspond to almost 20% of the country’s territories. Despite the crisis caused by fires and prolonged droughts, legislation to protect wetlands is still far from being passed by Congress. In the wetlands of the Iberá region, for example, fires spread over more than 100,000 hectares during the first two months of 2023. (INTA; Universidade de Rosário; Fundación Humedales)
National Service of Health and Agri-food Quality confirmed 5 new cases of avian influenza. A total of 55 cases of the disease have been detected so far across the country, since the first case, that was announced in February. (Senasa)
Soybean crushing factories are operating at the lowest capacity on record. According to Gustavo Idigoras, head of the oilseed and grain processing chamber at the Oilseed Industry Chamber of the Argentine Republic, the sector is facing a serious crisis, with idle industrial capacity approaching 70%. Although the 2022/23 harvest has not started yet, farmers are reluctant to sell their stored grains, fearing that a poor harvest will lead to depleted reserves. “This has led farmers to interrupt sales because of the scenario of high uncertainty in the coming months”, said Idigoras. (CIARA)
Slaughterhouses lose US$ 20 million – US$ 25 million per business day after the suspension of beef sales to China. Brazilian government plans to persuade China to lift the ban. President of the Republic, Lula da Silva, and the Minister of Agriculture, Carlos Fávaro, will visit China at the end of March. Two similar bans involving China took place in 2019 and 2021, lasting 13 days and 103 days, respectively. This forced Brazilian slaughterhouses to supply Chinese customers through their other South American units. In 2022, Brazil exported 1.991 million tonnes of fresh beef, with approximately 62% being destined for China. (Datagro Pecuária; Ministry of Agriculture)
Brazilian agribusiness exports reached US$ 9.88 billion in February, a decrease of 5.6% compared to 2022. Export price index rose by approximately 7%. Highlight to corn, cellulose, soybean bran and oil, and chicken meat. (Ministry of Agriculture)
Agrotools, a technology and big data company for agribusiness, reports growth of 84% in 2022 and announces that it will make its first acquisitions of other companies in 2023. Agrotools is valued at approximately US$ 94.58 million. (Agrotools)
2022/23 soybean harvest reaches a record of 44.3 million tonnes in the State of Mato Grosso. Harvest forecast is approximately 15.3 million tonnes more than Argentina, ranked third country in the world in soybean production. “Mato Grosso’s share in Brazilian production is such that, if we were a country and took the state’s production out of the national account, Brazil would become the second largest soybean grower in the world, behind the USA”, said Anderson Lombardi, secretary assistant for agribusiness and investments at the State Secretariat for Economic Development. (Conab; Sedec)
According to congressman Rafael Pezenti, garlic farmers in the southern states promise to organize protests on the border with Argentina if the illegal entry of the Argentine product is not curbed in the region. Argentine garlic is entering Brazilian territory illegally, contrary to the rules of Ordinance No. 435/2022, from the Ministry of Agriculture, that defines the quality standards and classification of the product. States of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul are the third and fourth largest garlic producers in Brazil, respectively. (Chamber of Deputies)
Country continues to expand its exports to Brazil, its main trading partner in Latin America. In 2022, exports of Chilean products to Brazil reached US$ 2.8 billion, an increase of 21.4% when compared to 2021. (ProChile)
Approximately 40,000 birds were slaughtered and buried in the center of the country, after the detection of the first case of avian flu in an industrial facility. “It’s a very limited event, our surveillance in the peripheral region continues to give negative results,” said Carlos Orellana, head of livestock protection at the Agricultural and Livestock Service. According to Orellana, the birds slaughtered represent a small fraction of the 30 million birds in the country. “We hope that this situation is contained and that Chile recovers its status as free of highly pathogenic avian influenza,” he added. Outbreak of the disease was detected at a facility belonging to meat packer Agrosuper, in the region of Rancagua, prompting the government to suspend chicken exports for 28 days. (SAG)
Increased imports of Brazilian coffee by 7.8% during the first two months of 2023, continuing the trend that started in 2022. During the period, national production increased 5%, reaching 1.9 million bags, compared to 1.8 million recorded in the previous year. (National Federation of Coffee Farmers)
More than 5,000 hectares of crops were destroyed in the Manabí region because of low temperatures. Seven regions declared a state of emergency because of the severe winter and flooding. Minister of Agriculture, Eduardo Izaguirre, said that subsidies will be granted to affected farmers, depending on the type of crop. So far, the biggest losses have occurred in corn and rice farms. (Ministry of Agriculture)
Approximately 1.2 million birds died from avian influenza. Among those, 90% died from the disease and 10% were slaughtered for biosecurity reasons. The virus has been present in Ecuador since November of 2022. (Ministry of Agriculture)
Mexican poultry farmers are calling for a dispute over GMO corn to be resolved without the need of an US-Mexico trade dispute panel. “It is essential for the poultry sector to guarantee competitive access to agricultural inputs, such as yellow corn, to ensure sufficient and timely supply of eggs and chicken for all Mexicans,” the National Poultry Union said in a statement. A week ago, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said he was willing to go to the trade dispute panel to defend the block on imports of GMO corn. (UNA)
Uruguay faces severe drought. “It is the biggest loss to agriculture and the national economy in the past 30 years“, said the Minister of Agriculture, Fernando Mattos. Since the beginning of February, the government has prohibited the use of potable water for non-priority purposes, such as irrigation of ornamental gardens or washing vehicles. (Ministry of Agriculture; State Water Agency)
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