Brazil’s corn and beef shipments set records in August

Brazil set a new monthly record for corn exports by shipping 7.55 million tons in August, a volume that surpasses the previous historical high of 7.32 million recorded in August 2019, government data showed Thursday.

The result is still 74% higher than the volume of corn exported in the eighth month of 2021, according to the Foreign Trade Secretariat (Secex). Besides the ample supply, Brazil also has a demanding international market to fill the gap left by Ukraine.

The cereal shipments accumulated until the third week of August had already exceeded the total of 4.3 million tons exported by the country in August last year, and the good pace of foreign sales signaled the possibility of a new record.

The National Association of Cereal Exporters (Anec) even forecasted an all-time high for foreign sales of corn but pulled back, citing that unfavorable weather conditions could affect port operations.

Brazil is in the final stretch of the 2021/22 second-crop corn harvest, with abundant grain available for shipment after record production performance.

The foreign sales of fresh beef also reached a new monthly record in August, with 203,23 thousand tons, Secex data showed, versus 181,600 tons shipped abroad a year earlier.

The national frigorific industry is going through a moment of big demand in the international market, mainly from China and the United States.

Also, among last month’s highlights, the government informed that sugar shipments surpassed 3 million tons, reaching the highest level since July 2000.

In a year-on-year comparison, foreign sweetener sales rose 19.2% as mills began to expand sweetener production, motivated by lower fuel prices that impact ethanol and better yields in later crops.

With information from Reuters