Agricultural production
2021 harvest estimates 263.1 million tonnes, 3.5% bigger than 2020
March 11, 2021 09h00 AM | Last Updated: March 11, 2021 02h42 PM
The national harvest of grains for 2021 should stay 9.0 million tonnes above the 2020 harvest. It is a growth of 3.5% over the last year, which had already been a record in the time series of the survey, started in the 1970s. This information comes from the Systematic Survey of Agricultural Production - LSPA, released today (11) by the IBGE. According to the February estimate, the total amount of cereals, legumes and oilsseds produced in Brazil this year should reach 263.1 million tonnes.
In relation to the January estimate, soybeans slightly increased (0.1%), remaining hitting records, and should reach 130.4 million tonnes. Corn slightly decreased in this comparison (-0.2%), though it remains at a record level in relation to the previous years, and it should reach 103.5 million tonnes. Compared with the previous year, the output of soybeans should be 7.3% bigger and the area to be harvested should increase 3.1%; and that of corn should be 0.3% bigger, with an increase of 3.4% in the area to be harvested.
"Although soybeans planting is delayed this year due to the droughts, the return of the rainfall in December caused the crops to recover in most areas of the country and its productivity should be high. The prices are very favorable in the international market and the demand remains high. Therefore, the producers continue to increase the planting areas of this commodity in the entire country," assessed Carlos Barradas, manager of the survey.
Yet, he highlights that the producers are concerned with the climate conditions, as high volumes of rainfall are expected in important producing areas, which can delay even more the harvest and compromise the quality of the grains. He explains that corn has already been finding very favorable conditions in relation to the market and dealing with the climate conditions.
"The reduction in the estimates for corn is associated with the lower productivity estimated for the crop, due to the lack of rainfall along the cycle of the first crop. Each year, the production of corn depends more on the output of the second crop, though it is increasing as the production technology advances in the country. Today, in some agricultural establishments, it is common to plant the cereal at the same time that you harvest it, thus optimizing the planting window of the harvest and allowing more climate security during the crop cycle," clarifies Barradas.
In relation to the previous information (January), the estimates for the output of wheat (16.8% or 965.8 thousand tonnes), coffea canephora (12.1% or 98.1 thousand tonnes), barley (9.0% or 32.9 thousand tonnes), oat (2.2% or 21.3 thousand tonnes), coffea arabica (1.6% or 30.6 thousand tonnes), corn - 2nd crop (0.3% or 262.8 thousand tonnes) and soybeans (0.1% or 117.2 thousand tonnes) increased.
In contrast, declines are expected in the output of rice (-0.1% or 8.8 thousand tonnes), beans - 3rd crop (-0.1% or 810 tonnes), beans - 2nd crop (-0.7% or 8.6 thousand tonnes), tomatoes (-1.2% or 46.0 thousand tonnes), corn - 1st crop (-1.7% or 441.3 thousand tonnes) and beans - 1st crop (-3.6% or 46.8 thousand tonnes).
The South and Northeast regions increased their estimates by 14.1% and 0.9%, respectively. The former should produce 31.7% of the total amount of grains in Brazil and the latter, 8.7% of the total. The Central-West, the biggest producer in Brazil, which accounts for 45.8% of the national harvest, decreased its estimate (-0.9%), as well as the Southeast (-0.6%) and North (-2.2%).
