SLC Agricola SA, Brazil’s biggest publically traded soybean and cotton grower, has tripled its land since 2007 but has cancelled plans to expand its growing area to 700,000 hectares by 2020 as soybean and corn prices are at four-year lows and cotton is experiencing a significant slide this year. The company will instead focus on improving efficiency and cutting costs. The company plans to increase its share of leased land in its portfolio from the current one third to half in order to boost cash flow and decrease capital expenditures, and to seek out joint ventures such as its partnership with Mitsui & Co. for growing soybeans and cotton in Brazil’s northeast. SLC’s plans for improved efficiency will be helped in the coming years as leading traders such as Bunge and Cargill are spending $2.5 billion on logistics improvements across terminals, barge fleets, and docks in the country.
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