Conab study analyzes the impact of rain on wheat crops

The combination of cold fronts and areas of instability in the first half of October caused extensive rainfall in Paraná and Santa Catarina, reaching over 300 mm in important producing regions. Excessive precipitation ended up partially damaging the management, maturation and harvest of wheat for the 2021/2022 harvest. The analysis is from the Agricultural Monitoring Bulletin (BMA), published by the National Supply Company (Conab). The Bulletin analyzed the period from October 1st to 15th, 2022.

Excessive rainfall raises concerns regarding the decline in quality due to excess moisture in wheat grains in the South region and in São Paulo - where 80% of the areas were harvested by the end of the first half of October. In Paraná, the total harvested area reaches around 50% and despite the productive potential having been impacted by drought in previous phases, the average yield is satisfactory. In Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, harvesting has already started (3%), despite frequent rains having limited operations.

For crops in the 2022/2023 harvest, it was observed that rainfall favored soybean sowing in Mato Grosso and Paraná. However, excess humidity delays this stage in São Paulo, Santa Catarina and Mato Grosso do Sul. In Minas Gerais and Bahia, planting began at the beginning of October, after the end of the sanitary void. In the Matopiba region, soybean sowing was only possible in irrigated areas due to low soil moisture.

In the case of 1st harvest corn, sowing progresses quickly, reaching 74% of the estimated area in Rio Grande do Sul and 75% in Paraná, with emphasis on the regions of Ponta Grossa, Guarapuava/Irati and Pato Branco. However, planting continues at a slow pace in São Paulo and Santa Catarina, mainly due to excess humidity. The stage is also proceeding slowly in Goiás, where producers have given priority to soybeans.

Climate analysis of other regions

During the analyzed period, the largest rainfall accumulated occurred in the North and South regions of Brazil. In the North region, rainfall was highest in western Amazonas, Rondônia, Pará and Acre. Heavy rains also occurred in the Central-West and Southeast regions, where areas of instability associated with heat and humidity resulted in up to 200 mm in the west of Mato Grosso and the southwest of Mato Grosso do Sul.

Meanwhile, little or no precipitation was observed in the Northeast region, which includes the Sealba and part of Matopiba regions. The scenario benefited the maturation and harvest of 3rd harvest beans and corn in Sealba.

The study is the result of collaboration between Conab, the National Institute of Meteorology (Inmet) and the Global Agriculture Monitoring Group (Glam), in addition to collaborating agents who contribute data researched in the field. The Agricultural Monitoring Bulletin is available in full on Conab website.