Jan 17, 2018
Mato Grosso Soybeans 1.2% Harvested vs. 5% Last Year
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
Wet weather in Mato Grosso has delayed the early start to the soybean harvest in the state.
The Mato Grosso Institute of Agricultural Economics (Imea) is reporting that 1.2% of the soybeans in the state had been harvested by the end of last week. This compares to 5.3% last year and the five-year average of 2.9%. The delay is due to a combination of delayed soybean planting and recent wet weather.
Harvesting is furthest advanced in western Mato Grosso where the soybeans are 3% harvested. These early harvested soybeans in western Mato Grosso will probably be followed by a second crop of cotton. Harvesting is slowest in northeastern Mato Grosso where it has not yet started. The soybean harvesting in the state is expected to pick up after January 20th when the weather is expected to improve.
Farmers in the state started to plant their safrinha corn last week and Imea is reporting that just 0.08% of the corn has been planted, which translates to a few thousand hectares. This is approximately 2% slower than last year's safrinha corn planting.
Imea indicated that by the end of December farmers in the state had sold 20% of their intended safrinha corn production, which is up 3.5% from November, but behind last year when 31% of the crop had been sold by the end of December. Forward selling is slow due to a lack of positive price direction and uncertainty concerning the weather during the upcoming growing season.
The average selling price of corn in Mato Grosso has been relatively stable for the last two months at R$ 16.71 sack, or approximately $2.30 per bushel.