Dec 02, 2022

2022/23 Soybean Planting in Paraguay Complete

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

The 2022/23 soybean planting in Paraguay is complete. The USDA is estimating that farmers in Paraguay are expected to plant 3.45 million hectares of soybeans in 2022/23 (8.52 million acres), which is up 4.5% compared to the 3.3 million hectares planted last year (8.15 million acres).

The 2022/23 soybean production in Paraguay is estimated at 10.0 million tons, which is more than double last year's disastrous crop of 4.2 million tons. Last year's crop was severely impacted by record high temperatures and one of the worst droughts in recent memory. Many of last year's soybeans were abandoned or not even harvested due to the extremely low yields.

This year, the growing season started off slowly with excessive rainfall and cold temperatures in October. The recent weather improved in November, but there are now areas in southeastern Paraguay that could use a rain and temperatures have warmed up. Adequate rainfall during December and January will be critical for the crop to reach its yield potential.

Farmers in Paraguay have forward contracted 10-20% of their anticipated 2022/23 soybean production. Farmers are hoping for a much better production this year because they lost money last year and many farmers had to renegotiate last year's forward contracts because they did not produce enough soybeans to meet the contract.