Brazil, one of the world’s largest food producers and exporters, will harvest a record 313.3 million tons of grain in 2023, 19% higher than in 2022, according to government data.
The data represents an increase of 1.4% compared to the calculations made last month, according to data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE).
The new forecasts indicate that the Latin American giant will harvest 50.1 million tons more cereals, legumes, and oilseeds this year than in 2022.
If the new forecasts are confirmed, Brazil will have two consecutive years with record harvests (2022 and 2023) and will overcome the losses it suffered in 2021 due to adverse weather conditions that caused production to fall from 254.1 million tons in 2020 to 253.2 million in 2021.
“This year’s production will increase due to the expansion of the harvested area, which will reach 77.5 million hectares, 5.8% higher than in 2022 and a new record in the country,” according to the IBGE report.
“Rice, corn, and soybeans will be the protagonists this year; together, they will represent 92.0% of all production and will account for 87.0% of the entire harvested area in the country. Soybean production will jump 25.8% to 150.3 million metric tons, and corn production will jump 16.0% to 127.8 million metric tons,” according to IBGE.
“Rice will shrink by 5.5% to 10.1 million metric tons. Wheat production will be 10.9 million metric tons, up 8.2 percent from 2022, and cotton production will rise 10.0 percent to an estimated 6.8 million metric tons,” IBGE added.
