If a Strong El Ni�o Arrives, Sorghum Area Will Gain More Space
Key takeaways
- A possible strong El Niño threatens to delay soybean planting and, consequently, the second-crop corn season, due to irregular rainfall outside the ideal planting calendar.
- "The risk of changes in soybean and corn planting windows exists, but we will wait for soybean planting and see how its development goes," says André Debastiani, coordinator of Agroconsult’s Rally da Safra event.
- Traditionally grown on a large scale in Africa and Asia, but with low yields, sorghum has recently gained ground in Brazil, both for animal and human consumption and for ethanol production.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
A possible strong El Niño threatens to delay soybean planting and, consequently, the second-crop corn season, due to irregular rainfall outside the ideal planting calendar. This climate stress scenario is expected to create room for the expansion of sorghum cultivation, repeating what happened this year after difficulties faced by producers in Goiás and Minas Gerais.
"The risk of changes in soybean and corn planting windows exists, but we will wait for soybean planting and see how its development goes," says André Debastiani, coordinator of Agroconsult’s Rally da Safra event. He believes the scenario should favor the expansion of sorghum production.
Traditionally grown on a large scale in Africa and Asia, but with low yields, sorghum has recently gained ground in Brazil, both for animal and human consumption and for ethanol production. Greater drought resistance, new corn pests and unstable weather have led more producers to choose the grain. The domestic market has also changed: today, companies are looking for producers, not the other way around.