Projections for Brazil’s sugarcane harvest not so sweet

Brazil’s 2021/2022 sugarcane harvest has barely begun but it has already been written off by several producers. Droughts and a decrease in planted area have pushed forecasts down, with the sector expecting an overall harvest of 628.1 million tons — 4 percent less than 2020/2021. 

And this decrease is projected to be even sharper in Brazil’s Center-South — comprising the Center-West, Southeast, and South — the country’s leading sugarcane-producing region.

Perhaps the main frustration for sugarcane producers is that the impending problems with the 2021/2022 harvest are largely out of their hands. The lack of rainfall between April 2020 and March 2021 actually helped last year’s record-breaking harvest, but is now expected to produce negative repercussions for the 2021/2022 season.

“Many sugarcane fields suffered from hydric stress, so many producers chose to start this year’s harvest a bit later to wait for the crops to fully develop,” explains Marina Malzoni, market intelligence analyst at consultancy...