Brazil may have second category soybeans if the chain is not organized, says Embrapa's general chief

Brazilian soy could become a “second category” product on the international market, if the crop chain is not organized. The alert comes from the head of Embrapa Soja, Alexandre Nepomuceno, who gave exclusive interviews to Agência SAFRAS during Expodireto Cotrijal 2023. According to him, the future of soy is the addition of value to products and by-products, allowing a diversification of uses and markets. The United States is already well advanced in this regard, with five soybean varieties with altered oil quality being cultivated, and a gradual increase in the areas destined for them, so “we need to be careful” not to be left behind. Soy is made up of low levels of oleic acid, and high levels of palmitic and linolenic acid. The increase in oilseed quality involves increasing, through genetic improvement, the amount of oleic acid, and reducing the other two. “Palmitic acid, in a large presence in an engine in a cold environment, solidifies. This is a big problem for those who use ...