Sarnia

South America Set To Increase Corn And Soy Exports

Jose Gobbee, Director of GOAGRO, an ag investment company, says Brazil and Argentina are primed to expand their corn and soybean exports.

It's estimated that Brazil has 785 million acres that could be converted to farming while Argentina has another 91 million.

At the recent Oilseed and Grain Trade Summit in Minneapolis, Gobbee told his audience much of that land will never be converted due to economic and logistical reasons.

He does anticipate though that about 20-25 million acres will be used for farming in the next five to ten years.

The director estimates that amount of conversion will boost South America's 56 per cent global share of soymeal trade in 2012 to 63 per cent by 2022.

He's also projecting the amount of corn produced in Brazil will jump by 86 per cent over the next decade.

Gobbee notes most of Argentina's grain production increase will come from a corn increase from 57 to 65 million tonnes over that time.

Wheat production is set to balloon from 11 to 18 million tonnes.

Read More Local Stories