Cargill projects grain surge in Brazil on record soybean harvest
Cargill targets higher volumes and port investments after tough 2024
28 April 2025
2 minute read
By: The Brazilian unit of US grain trader Cargill expects to handle higher volumes of grains and other products in the South American country this year compared to 2024, Reuters reported, citing an interview with Paulo Sousa, president of Cargill.
The optimism expressed by Sousa reflects a record 2025 soybean harvest and beneficial weather for Brazil's second corn crop, which accounts for about 75% of national corn output in a given year.
Sousa said he expects the total volume originated, processed and sold this year in Brazil to equal or exceed the marks of 51 million tons recorded in 2023. This compares to 45 million tons in 2024, when Brazil produced a smaller soybean crop due to drought in key growing regions.
Brazil is the world's largest producer and exporter of the oilseed.
Cargill in 2024 had a net loss of 1.7 billion real ($298.83 million) in Brazil, mainly due to exchange rate effects, according to company disclosures. In 2023, Cargill had a record profit of 2.5 billion reais in Brazil.
The company, one of the world's largest grain traders and processors, continues to invest in Brazil, which is one of the immediate beneficiaries of a trade war between the United States and China, the main destination for Brazil's soybeans in export markets.
According to Sousa, the trade war may divert Chinese demand for products produced in Brazil such as Brazilian soybeans. On the other hand, the dispute is not favorable to the global trade system, Sousa said.
In the short term, Sousa said the firm will focus investments in port terminals and plans to boost biofuels production in Brazil, referring to biodiesel and ethanol from sugarcane and corn.
Sousa said Cargill this week hopes to be a competitive bidder at a government auction of port terminals in Paranagua and Porto Alegre.
($1 = 5.6888 reais)
