Dec 17, 2020
Imea Estimates 14% of Mato Grosso's Corn will be Planted Late
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
Approximately three-quarters of Brazil's corn will be produced as a second crop planted after soybeans are harvested. The ideal planting window for the safrinha corn is generally considered the months of January and February. In central Brazil, if the corn is planted after the ideal window has closed, there is an increased risk of the corn running out of moisture before it is mature. In southern Brazil, if the corn is planted after the window has closed, there is an increased risk of frost before the corn matures.
The state of Mato Grosso is Brazil's largest corn producing state and the ideal planting window for corn in the state generally closes about the third week of February. In Mato Grosso, the summer rains generally end late-April or early May, so if the corn is planted in March for example, the crop may run out of moisture before the grain filling process is complete.
Dry weather during September and October delayed the start of the 2020/21 soybean planting in the state and as a result, the soybean harvest is going to be delayed as well. Therefore, the planting of the safrinha corn will also be delayed.
According to the Mato Grosso Institute of Agricultural Economics (Imea). Approximately 14.1% of the 2020/21 safrinha corn in the state will be planted after the ideal planting window will close at the end of February. During the 2019/20 growing season, 8% of the corn was planted after the window had closed and in 2018/19, 4% was planted after it closed.
There is a risk of lower yields if the safrinha corn is planted later-than-normal, but domestic corn prices are very favorable in Brazil, so it is expected that Brazilian farmers will risk planting their corn later-than-normal in expectation that the higher prices will compensate for the potential lower yields.