Argentine soybean crushers in crisis mode

Soybean crushers in Argentina are in “crisis mode” due to low supplies of soybeans amidst the worst soybean crop in nearly a quarter of a century and farmers holding tight to their remaining soybean stocks. The combination of drought and slow farmer selling has pushed the crushing industry to idle nearly 70% of their capacity, which is the highest on record outside of labor protests. The soybean harvest has not started and when it does, the total 2022/23 soybean production could be in the range of 27-28 million tons or lower. In 2021/22, Argentina produced 43.9 million tons of soybeans. Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong in Argentina this growing season from the worst drought in 60 years, to numerous waves of record high temperatures to record low temperatures and even mid-summer localized frosts. The adverse conditions have convinced farmers to hold tight to their existing soybean stocks and to be very reluctant sellers of their anticipated 2022/23 production. In ...