Rio Grande do Sul is experiencing a super wheat harvest and losses in summer crops in 2022

Drought with a historic negative impact on corn and soybeans and a super wheat harvest were the main highlights highlighted by the Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives of the State of Rio Grande do Sul (FecoAgro/RS), when taking stock of the year 2022. Investments, Smartcoop and the relationship with the new elected federal government were other topics discussed during the virtual press conference promoted by the entity this Tuesday, December 13th.

According to the president of FecoAgro/RS, Paulo Pires, the drought in summer crops was one of the most serious in the history of contemporary agriculture, with a major impact on production. He highlighted that the producers associated with the cooperatives were directly affected and, consequently, also the cooperatives. “We had an audience in January this year with the then Minister of Agriculture, Teresa Cristina, in Santo ngelo (RS), and we asked for an extension of debts until after the harvest, but unfortunately it did not happen and credit in 2022 was very scarce”, observed.

The big positive fact this year, according to Pires, was wheat. He said that despite the losses, the producer believed in the crop, was resilient and saw the possibility of faster income with winter crops. “The producer believed, increased the area and we had an exceptional climate and planting design. We have a harvest that exceeds 5 million tons. We are already talking about an average productivity in the State of over 3 thousand kilos per hectare. Some producers achieved more than that”, he informed, pointing out another factor that also boosted the planting of the crop, which was the attractive price. “At one point, we had R$115,00 paid to the producer. Today it returned to the level of January 2022, which is R$84,00”.

Pires also spoke about the issue of commercialization. “Today we have 55% of wheat sold and 65% of production in Rio Grande do Sul, that is, 3,2 million tons, are in cooperatives. And this worries us because we have a short space of time to carry out this sale, which, mainly, is presented as a consequence of the work led by FecoAgro and Embrapa, which is exports”, he emphasized, adding that last year around 70 % of the 3,5 million tons harvested were exported. “We sell to several countries and exports consolidated a great liquidity of wheat from Rio Grande do Sul”.

The president of FecoAgro/RS made it clear that wheat today presents itself as an interesting alternative in winter. “Even to talk about 2023, we envisage an increase in wheat area, but we want to express a little concern at this moment regarding commercialization. The crop has been harvested, the product is deposited in warehouses, but unfortunately we do not have clarity on commercialization”, he emphasized.

Paulo Pires also pointed out during the balance of the year that the revenue of cooperatives in Rio Grande do Sul, according to a survey carried out in the year to October and compared with the same period in 2021, will remain at last year's numbers. “According to the projections we have, the revenue of the Gaucho cooperative movement is R$ 32 billion, maintaining the same figure for the same period in 2021. The soy and corn factors weighed heavily on this account. The positive fact is the issue of surpluses, where we have a growth of 6,7% until October and may undergo adjustments later on. Gross margin grew 18% and net margin increased 9%,” he said. According to him, cooperatives also had a very significant increase in their costs, mainly due to the increase in fuel prices and, therefore, the net margin grew less than the gross margin.

Regarding the cooperatives' business platform, Smartcoop, the director stated that it is a success. “There are 29 cooperatives with 7.577 active users, which represents a total area of ​​more than 800 thousand hectares, making up 10% of the agricultural area in the State”, he pointed out. Pires also spoke about investments that cooperatives are making, mainly in the area of ​​storage, but highlighted that the cooperative system in Rio Grande do Sul is beginning to take important steps in the area of ​​industrialization. Still on the investment side, Pires spoke about expanding the training of managers and technicians in 2023, with support from Ocergs and Sescoop.

In relation to the new federal government that takes over in 2023, Pires highlighted that the sector hopes for a good relationship and that cooperatives must continue to position themselves. “The election has passed and today we are all together in one country and our interests must be convergent. There is nothing wrong with thinking differently about some things, and cooperatives must continue to take a stand”, he concluded.