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September 1, 2026 |
Brazil's Soybean Farmers Hitting Brakes on Once-Rapid Planting Pace
Farm Progress Show: Pricey fertilizer and high interest rates are squeezing Brazilian farmers, likely leading to a pause in the country’s two-decade soybean planting binge.
At a Glance
- Fertilizer costs still sky high as Brazil planting season begins.
- Brazil soybean acres seen roughly flat in season ahead.
- The “place to go” for advanced biofuels isn’t the U.S
As soaring costs for fertilizer and other inputs squeeze margins, Brazil’s soybean farmers are about to hit the brakes on a two-decade planting expansion binge that turned the country into the world’s top producer and exporter of the oilseed.
Brazil soybean acreage rose by an average of about 5% a year over the past 20 years, said Matthew Kruse, president of Commstock Investments. “What’s different next season is we’re basically looking for a pause in that growth,” Kruse said during a panel discussion Tuesday at the annual Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa.
