Agricultural production retreats after records in 2020 and 2021

For Cepea researchers, the main factor in this drop in 2022 occurred both in agriculture and in agribusiness. In agriculture, the increase appeared in the production of fertilizers, fuels, seeds, machines and others.

Considering the performance of the Brazilian economy and agribusiness, the sector’s share in the total reached 24.8% in 2022, below the 26.6% recorded in 2021.

Embrapa agronomist and economist Pedro Vieira explains one of the factors that contributed to this scenario in Brazil. “Brazil had been producing 3,500 kilos of soy per hectare, on average. The 2021/2022 harvest was 3,000 kg per hectare. A significant reduction in productivity due to Covid-19, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and crop failure due to the weather, basically that”.

For economist Hugo Garbe, among the factors that impact the reduction in the GDP of agriculture, it is also possible to highlight the war between Russia and Ukraine and its effects. “They are big exporters of agricultural defensives and because of the war, that price ended up increasing in the world. The dollar is a high dollar compared to the pre-pandemic, it also has a great influence and we still don’t have the entire supply chain normalized. So, in general, this cost still weighs on the farmer’s pocket”.

On the other hand, while the agricultural scenario recorded a drop of 6.39%, the livestock branch increased by 2.11%. This increase was linked to the increase in gross production value and the reduction in input costs. The positive result was mainly due to the performance of livestock within the gate and, to a lesser extent, to agro-services.