The favorable weather is considered to be the main contributing factor for the super-crop. "We had a super-crop in Brazil in 2003. The weather was excellent. This year, the weather is similar to that of 2003," said Pereira.
The survey was conducted by 70 Conab technicians from March 19 to 23. They interviewed farmers, representatives of rural cooperatives, and of public and private organizations in the main grain producing regions.
According to the survey, soy production should reach 58 million tons, an 8.5% increase over the previous crop. The corn crop also showed a significant increase, compared with the figures for 2005/2006. This year, the first crop shows a 15.2% increase, from 31.8 million tons to 36.6 million tons of corn.
Another item that showed significant increase in production is cotton. Since last year, the planted area in Brazil increased by 24%, and production should increase by 32.9%, from 1.7 million tons to 2.2 million tons.
According to Eledon Pereira, the increase in planted cotton area was due to attractive prices in the time of planting.
ABr