Oct 13, 2020

Brazil 2020/21 Soybean Planting 3.4%, Slowest in 10 years

Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.

The 2020/21 Brazilian soybean crop is 3.4% planted compared to 11.1% last year. According to AgRural, this is the slowest planting pace in 10 years since 2010/11. In Mato Grosso the soybeans are 3.0% planted and in Parana the soybeans are 8.0% planted. Once they receive enough rainfall to start planting, the larger farmers in Mato Grosso can plant a lot of soybeans in a short period of time. They will run 24/7 especially for guys with GPS systems on their planter.

Farmers in central Brazil would like to have their soybeans planted by about October 25th in order to allow enough time to plant their safrinha corn within the ideal planting window that closes about the third week of February. That may be hard to do this year with the delayed onset of the summer rains.

We already know that Brazil will have few soybeans harvested at the end of January and the start of February which means if China wants soybeans in February they will have to go the U.S. Spot prices for soybeans in Brazil are R$ 150.00 to R$ 153.00 per sack (approximately $12.75 to $13.10 per bushel) but there are no sellers. The highest offers are from end users both in southern Brazil and central Brazil.