Brazil soybean harvest hits 25%, safrinha planting 43%: AgRural

Brazil’s soybean harvest reached 25% of the expected planted area on Thursday, private consultants AgRural said in a weekly report Friday, up eight percentage points on the week.

The figures remain short of the 36% harvested at this time last year and a five-year average of 27%.

The biggest advance was in the number one producing state of Mato Grosso, whose harvest was 61% complete, up from 45% last week and nearing the five-year average of 65% amid reports of fewer losses than last week.

“Despite the daily rains and the fact that there are still lots coming out with excess moisture from the crops, the rain volumes registered this week were smaller and the cases of losses, which were already punctual, decreased,” the report said.

Elsewhere, the fourth biggest producing state of Goias was 30% complete, up from 18%, while in Parana and Mato Grosso do Sul just 11% and 25% was harvested respectively.

In the rest of the country, the harvest reached 8% in Santa Catarina, 22% in São Paulo, 15% in Minas Gerais, 2% in Bahia, 3% in Tocantins, 4% in Pará and 55% in Rondônia.

In Rio Grande do Sul, the harvest “should be good”, despite productivity losses due to a lack of rainfall.

AgRural still expects the crop to be 116 million mt and will revise its production estimate next week.

In terms of corn the safrinha was 43% planted, up 17% in a week, but below the five-year average of 47%.

“In Mato Grosso, which managed to accelerate the soybean harvest this week, the planting of the safrinha jumped from 48% to 69% in one week,” the report said, adding that Goias was 26% planted.

However, further south rains have prevented planting with the soil moisture too high in the states of Parana and Mato Grosso do Sul.

In both states the planting advanced ten points, to 19% in Parana and 21% in Mato Grosso do Sul.

In other states, planting reached 29% in São Paulo and 42% in Minas Gerais. Both are in line with last year's pace.

Meanwhile, the summer corn harvest reached 19% of the total area estimated for the Center-South of Brazil on Thursday, compared to 15% in the previous week, the same as last year but down from a five-year average of 22%.