Corn and Soybean Digest

Marcelo Favarão

Articles by Marcelo Favarão

For a long time, I have read articles about Brazil’s capacity to expand its agricultural area. But most of these articles are by foreign writers, who are not aware of what is happening here or what our current administration’s policies are for farmland development.

Brazil Funds Farm Technology

Planting is almost finished (mid-October) in the western area of my state of Paraná; that represents half of the state crop. Farmers are beginning to plant earlier and are doing a faster job than 10 years ago because it advances the planting of a second corn crop in early February. The frost season begins in late May. And, we also plant faster because of bigger and better machinery.

Soybean Planting, Brazil Style

September marks the beginning of the summer crop in Brazil. Farmers here in Paraná have the planters greased and tractors ready to begin. If rainfall allows, soybean planting begins in the second half of September. For many years, soybeans have been the major crop in Brazil, then corn. And that’s easy to understand – corn is more technical to grow, needing more fertilizer and nitrogen. Soybeans can grow and produce well in relatively poor tropical soils.

Caution Should be our Last Name 1

I’m a farmer and agronomist in Campina da Lagoa, in the western Paraná state of Brazil. I hope to share with you soybean and farming-related concerns from a Brazilian farmer perspective, or at least my perspective, in this and future issues of the Corn & Soybean Digest.