Newsletter AgriBrasilis - January 4th
Cláudia Dias-Arieira is a professor and researcher at the State University of Maringá – UEM, an agronomist and M.Sc. from UEM, with a Ph.D. in phytopathology from the Federal University of Viçosa.
Among plant parasitic nematodes, there are species that have a wide host range, parasitizing almost all cultivated plants, such as Meloidogyne incognita, M. javanica, Pratylenchus brachyurus and Helicotylenchus dihystera. On the other hand, there are species whose host range is more restricted, such as Heterodera glycines, which parasitizes soybeans and some other legumes, and Radopholus similis, the burrowing nematode, whose main host is banana trees. The main species of nematodes that occur in Brazil are native, i.e., they are naturally present in our areas. Therefore, eliminating them is virtually impossible, and it is necessary to learn to live with them.
(Access the full article on the AgriBrasilis website)
Media Partner Event: AveSui 2024 (April 16th to 18th, 2024 – Medianeira, PR, Brazil)
" AveSui - Feira da Indústria Latino-Americana de Aves, Suínos e Peixes reaches its 23rd edition and will be held on April 16, 17, and 18, 2024, in Medianeira, State of Paraná, Brazil, within a region that covers the Southern States, the triple border, and where the largest production center of animal protein in the world is concentrated, close to agribusinesses, cooperatives, and farmers..."
Argentina: Argentina will export soy and beef produced in deforestation-free areas to Spain. Starting in December, the first cargos of soy flour will be sent to Spain, continuing throughout 2024. The announcement was made through a presentation by the Chamber of the Petroleum Industry and the Cereal Export Center at the Argentine Embassy in Madrid, Spain, where they described details about the soy flour certified by Control Union and with ViSeC traceability, the platform that certifies the “Deforestation Free” of Argentine products. (CIARA; CEC)
Brazil: Sugarcane crushing and sugar production are breaking records in the 2023/24 harvest in central-southern Brazil. According to the Sugarcane Industry Union, the industry benefited from a favorable climate, investments by the mill industry, and recovery in yield, which resulted in 638.4 million tonnes, an increase of 18.29% in sugarcane crushing compared to the same period in 2022. This volume already exceeds the best performance in history, of 617.7 million tonnes from the complete 2015/16 harvest, despite the end of the cycle only being at the end of March 2024. (Unica)
Agribusiness became a target for hackers and corresponds to 10% of ransomware attacks in 2023 in Brazil. In this type of attack, criminals break into systems and kidnap data, demanding a cash ransom in exchange for granting access to the affected information or systems. ( Apura Cyber Corp )
Wheat exports are expected to reach 512.3 thousand tonnes in December, according to projections by the National Association of Cereal Exporters. If the estimates are confirmed, exports will be lower compared to the same period in 2022, which corresponded to around 689 thousand tonnes. Regarding the amount for the year, projections are 2.5 million tonnes, against 3.2 million tonnes in 2022. ( ANEC - Associação Nacional dos Exportadores de Cereais )
Chile: Chile and the European Union signed the Advanced Framework Agreement (AMA) that modernizes the current Association Agreement, in force since 2003. The new agreement will increase the percentage of products with European Union tariff reduction, from 94.7 % to 99.6%. In addition, it will expand the recognition of geographical indications for Chilean agricultural products and will have chapters dedicated to Gender and Trade, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, Sustainable Food Systems, Digital Commerce, Energy, and Raw Materials. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Marcelo Mello is the director of fertilizers at StoneX Brasil , with a degree in administration from FGV - Fundação Getulio Vargas .
What marked the fertilizer market in 2023?
Unlike the last two years, where price volatility was extremely high, in the 1H of 2023 the NPK fertilizers prices were still decreasing, which is a process that began in mid-2022, and then they entered a sideways price trend from the 2H onwards. Less volatile prices and at a lower level than in have 2022 encouraged a recovery in consumption/deliveries during 2023. As a reference, in 2022, consumption fell by 10%, but in 2023 the estimate is that it will return to the historic record levels reached in 2021.
(Access the full article on the AgriBrasilis website)
Biostimulants market in Brazil is growing and is estimated to represent US$ 3.7 billion. According to the country head of Elicit Plant in Brazil, Felipe Sulzbach, the adoption of biostimulants in the country reaches 30%, while in the world the adoption is around 18%. ( ELICIT PLANT )
EuroChem received on December 20th a license to initiate phosphate fertilizer production in Serra do Salitre, State of Minas Gerais. It is estimated to manufacture 1 million tonnes of fertilizers per year, which represents 15% of national demand. Eurochem already produces phosphate concentrate in Serra do Salitre, which is sold to other companies to mix it. The new operation will allow the company to also manufacture finished fertilizers, with a higher added value. (Eurochem)
After a reduction in the two previous seasons, pesticide drift in soybean complaints have increased again in the State of Rio Grande do Sul. Since August, 99 cases were reported on grape, pecan, olive and other crops, mainly due to 2,4-D herbicide. “Due to the rainy year and the very short planting window, soybean farmers are rushing to sow and often do not observe the recommended weather conditions and technical issues for using their equipment”, said Ricardo Felicetti, director of the Department of Plant Defense from the State of Rio Grande do Sul Secretariat of Agriculture. (Seapi)
Bunge launches in Argentina a new line of fertilizers that temporarily inhibits nitrification, reducing the fraction of nitrates and their consequent loss through leaching and denitrification. The technology is an exclusive patent from Koch Agronomy Services (KAS) and is a nitrification inhibitor based on the active ingredient pronitridine, which temporarily occupies the active site of the enzyme ammonia monooxidase, responsible for the first stage of oxidation, and thus reduces the conversion rate of ammonium into nitrate, avoiding nitrogen loss and maximizing its availability for absorption by the crop. (Bunge; KAS)
In/out ratio of grains from Argentina are harmed after exchange rate measures announced by Luis Caputo , Minister of Economy. The situation arises from the reduction in grain prices and the increase in the value of inputs due to the new value of the import dollar and the extra cost generated by limitations on imports. According to Jeremias Battistoni , an analyst at AZGroup , in recent days “it took 32% more soybeans and 33% more corn than average to buy a tonne of urea”, and the corresponding values for diammonium phosphate were 17 and 16% larger.
Flavio Hirata is a partner at the agribusiness consultancy AllierBrasil , an agronomist graduated at Esalq/USP and an expert in pesticide registration.
If these deadlines are met, in the coming months there will be a large number of approved registrations, potentially reaching more than 4,400. On one hand, it is highly positive as it increases competition, but on the other hand, it is worrying as it could cause a strong and fast drop in product prices, causing major losses for stockholders in the country. In addition, if the deadlines are not met, there will most likely be a record number of legal actions to enforce the established deadlines, following the trend of recent years.
Risk analysis is also foreseen for the granting of registrations for new products, as well as for changes in uses that imply an increase in dose, crop inclusion, application equipment, or in cases of reanalysis.
(Access the full article on the AgriBrasilis website)