Remaining Soybeans in Rio Grande do Sul Exhibiting Poor Quality

Some farmers in Rio Grande do Sul have not been able to harvest soybeans for upward of 20 days and harvesting in Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina will continue to be slow due to rainfall that is forecasted to persist on-and-off until about May 20th.

The quality of the soybeans left to harvest in Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina is poor and getting worse. Many of the pods have split open spilling the seeds, the seeds have sprouted in the pods or turned moldy. The soybeans have no commercial value other than maybe animal rations.

Prior to the heavy rains and flooding, which started in early May, the soybeans were satisfactory with an estimate statewide yield of 3,000 kg/ha (44.7 bu/ac), but that has now changed with about 22-24% of the soybeans left to harvest in the state.

The director of Patrita Agronegocios estimates that soybean losses due to the heavy rains could be 2.4 to 2.8 million tons, but it is too early to make a final judgement. In a worst-case scenario, he indicated that Brazil’s 2023/24 soybean production could be as low as 140.0 million tons.

According to professor Dr. Elmar Floss, soybean losses in Rio Grande do Sul could be between 3 to 5 million tons and the soybean production in Rio Grande do Sul will probably be in the range of 17 to 18 million tons compared to the original estimate of 22 million tons.

Tags: harvest, rainfall, estimate, soybeans, yield, Rio Grande do Sul