Arco Norte is the main flow axis for exports from Matopiba

The port of Santos is not the main choice for farmers in the Matopiba region (which involves the states of Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí and Bahia) for transporting production. According to the 2024 Agrologistics Yearbook, released by the National Supply Company (Conab), around 94,29% of the corn exported through the new Brazilian agricultural frontier last year was shipped in Itaqui (MA), which represents 5,55 million of tons. The port located in Maranhão is also the main export port for soybeans to the region, handling approximately 10,41 million tons, a 26,3% share of the exported volume.

“This result is a reflection of advances not only in the region’s ports, but also in modes. This progress drives this new axis, by making the region economically attractive to farmers, who find cheaper freight compared to routes to ports in the South and Southeast. Furthermore, there is a growing investment made in these ports for the shipment of grains and internalization of fertilizers, which promotes, for many cargoes directed to Arco Norte, return freight. A scenario that tends to be repeated also in the new Sealba region (Sergipe, Alagoas and Bahia)”, assesses the superintendent of Operational Logistics at Conab, Thomé Guth.

According to the Company's publication, Bahia is still the main exporting state of Matopiba soybeans. However, in percentage terms, it was the one that grew least compared to the other states belonging to this region. In the period between 2019 and 2023, the increase in exports from Bahia was 38,7% compared to 81,3%, 103,8% and 64,1% in the states of Maranhão, Piauí and Tocantins, respectively. “It is worth noting that the volume of soybean exports from Maranhão has been approaching that exported by Bahia, with a tendency for the state of Maranhão to become the main exporter of the oilseed in the region. This is because almost everything that Maranhão produces is exported, while Bahia reserves part of the production to plant, consume and export soybean meal”, ponders the Conab superintendent.

Growth in exports 

The Conab publication points out that, compared to 2019, the volume exported by Arco Norte increased, both for soybeans, from 30,4%, in 2019 to 33,8% in 2023, and for corn, from 33,4. 42,5% to 6,9% in the same period. The port of Santos had an increase only for soybeans in comparisons over the last five years, in the order of 5,0%, falling by XNUMX% in the case of corn.

“If the comparison goes further, this increase in the importance of Arco Norte for exports is even more significant”, he highlights. According to data from the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (MDIC), in 2010 the share of ports in the North region in soybean and corn exports was around 8%. A completely different scenario to that found in 2022, when this contribution reached 40,3%.

“Last year, however, they lost 3,4% to ports in the South and Southeast of the country. But it is worth highlighting that this occurred, above all, due to the redirection of part of the shipments, due to navigability issues of the waterways in the North of the country, given the severe drought recorded”, he assesses.