ARGENTINA: Drought scorches corn crops and threatens to burn off soy in major food producer

Record ID: 446790

  • Title: ARGENTINA: Drought scorches corn crops and threatens to burn off soy in major food producer
  • Date: 6th January 2012
  • Summary: BUENOS AIRES PROVINCE, ARGENTINA (JANUARY 04, 2011) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF CORN FIELD CORN LABOURING UNDER SUN ADRIAN POLETTI, ANALYST AND AGRICULTURAL ENGINEER FOR CONSULTING FIRM INCREMENTAR, WALKING THROUGH DRY CORN POLETTI SHOWING CORN COB AND TALKING (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) ADRIAN POLETTI, ANALYST AND AGRICULTURAL ENGINEER FOR CONSULTING FIRM INCREMENTAR, SAYING: "We calculate that corn for popcorn in this area should be producing between 9900 to 11,000 pounds (4500 to 5000 kgs) per hectare, and now if we're lucky they'll produce 30 percent of that. Normal corn under good conditions must have already lost 30 percent by now, and the fields that didn't have a proper fallow period or have weeds, I think they'll lose 50 percent." VARIOUS OF SOY FIELD WITH LEAVES TURNED OVER BECAUSE OF LACK OF WATER DRY PLANT ON FENCE VARIOUS OF FARMER JORGE BIANCIOTTO LOOKING AT SOY PLANTS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) FARMER JORGE BIANCIOTTO SAYING: "I think this season is going to end up bankrupting a lot of people. The investments this year are high. Rents went up. Costs went up. Transport went up. And I think a lot of people are going to lose their capital to keep on working, unfortunately-- definitely in the leased fields and those who own their fields are going to make far less than they expected." FIELD WITH PLANTS ALREADY HARVESTED VARIOUS OF STUNTED SECOND-GROWTH SOY SUN OVER FIELD
  • Embargoed: 21st January 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Argentina, Argentina
  • Country: Argentina
  • Topics: Disasters / Accidents / Natural catastrophes,Environment / Natural World
  • Reuters ID: LVA6TZ22O5L1Z367MJ2BZY8Y7C3N
  • Story Text: Unrelenting sun in Argentina has scorched as much as a fifth of its corn crop and the drought will start biting into the country's vast soy harvest unless rains come to the rescue this month or next.
    Here in Argentina's legendary Pampas farm and cattle region, corn plants laboured under the hot summer sun while corn and soybean prices both rallied more than 10 percent in the past three weeks as a hot, dry southern hemisphere summer has roasted fields.
    Argentina is the world's second-largest corn exporter and third-largest soybean seller. So with rising food prices threatening to push more people around the world into poverty and hunger, global markets are watching the South American country's spotless blue horizon for signs of rain.
    On Wednesday (January 04), analyst and agricultural engineer Adrian Poletti, said things were not looking good for the harvest.
    "We calculate that corn for popcorn in this area should be producing between 9900 to 11,000 pounds (4500 to 5000 kgs) per hectare, and now if we're lucky they'll produce 30 percent of that. Normal corn under good conditions must have already lost 30 percent by now, and the fields that didn't have a proper fallow period or have weeds, I think they'll lose 50 percent," said Poletti, who works for the consulting firm Incrementar.
    For corn, a crop that develops earlier in the season, the damage has largely been done. Analysts have slashed their Argentine harvest estimates. Still, they see little risk that prices will surge as much as they did in early 2011, when corn prices hit record highs above $8 a bushel.
    The outlook for soybeans, Argentina's larger and more essential crop, remains up in the air. The country exports about half of the world's soyoil, used for cooking and in the booming international biofuels sector.
    But walking through his wilting soy crop, farmer Jorge Bianciotto was not positive about the outlook.
    "I think this season is going to end up bankrupting a lot of people. The investments this year are high. Rents went up. Costs went up. Transport went up. And I think a lot of people are going to lose their capital to keep on working, unfortunately-- definitely in the leased fields and those who own their fields are going to make far less than they expected," he said.
    Late-season corn planting has ground to a halt in Argentina while soy farmers have started to compare this year to the nightmarish drought of 2008/09, which cost them 30 percent of their harvest. That year, corn growers lost 40 percent of their crop.
    After December rains came in less than their historical norms, farmers are praying for healthy downpours this month or next that will spare them a repeat of the disastrous 2008/09 harvest. That year, the La Nina syndrome, which tends to cause dry weather in Argentina, walloped crops before they could be collected.
    The fiscal health of Argentina's government also hinges on revenue from the country's biggest export, soy.
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