Argentina is the world’s number one soyoil and soymeal exporter, and the head of the country’s fertilizer chamber warms that farmers are planting too much soy without crop rotation causing depletion to the soil. Since its 2002 sovereign default, Argentina depends on its agricultural tax revenues to fund its social policies and farmers are planting too much soy in order to limit their exposure to risk. Argentinian policy favors soy above corn or wheat which both have export limits established which can be lowered or raised throughout the year causing uncertainty for growers. Soybeans are also more tolerant of adverse weather conditions. Thirty six percent of Argentina’s total 2.8 million tons of fertilizer sales this year are for soybeans, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture forecasts that Argentina’s soy harvest will be 53.5 million tons at a time when high global yields are casting uncertainty on commodity prices.
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