Sao Paulo | Reuters — Brazil is “closer than it had ever been” to exporting fresh beef to the U.S., the CEO of Brazilian meat packer JBS SA said Thursday, adding he expects shipments to start later this year. The Brazilian agriculture ministry expects a formal announcement on meat exports to the U.S. when President […] Read more

JBS CEO says Brazil close to exporting fresh beef to U.S.

U.S. seen approving Brazil fresh beef imports
Sao Paulo | Reuters –– Brazil’s agriculture ministry said on Friday the U.S. is likely to approve imports of Brazilian fresh beef this year, after President Dilma Rousseff visits Washington in June. Brazil, the world’s top beef exporter, is already a steady exporter of cooked beef that appears in items such as canned corned beef […] Read more
Brazil farm belt roads blocked in new trucker strike
Sao Paulo | Reuters — Truckers in Brazil resumed roadblocks across the country’s main farm belt early on Thursday, after failing to reach common ground in talks with the government and freight companies in recent weeks regarding pay and fuel prices. Highway police on Thursday evening estimated that protesters had blocked roads at 17 points […] Read more
Brazil’s Rural Society contests limits on foreign land purchases
Sao Paulo | Reuters –– Brazil’s Rural Society, a group representing large- and medium-scale farmers, filed a case with the country’s Supreme Court on Thursday seeking to overturn restrictions on the amount of land foreigners can purchase. The attorney general’s office tightened restrictions on foreign land ownership in Brazil in 2010, an action that officials […] Read more
Brazil soy exports likely to slow after fire near Santos port
Sao Paulo | Reuters –– Brazil’s soy exports will likely slow because a six-day fire at a nearby fuel-storage facility has restricted access to Brazil’s largest port, Santos, a port official and the soy industry association Abiove said on Tuesday. Authorities have agreed to restrict truck access to some terminals at the port at least […] Read more
Brazilian beef exporters weigh WTO case against EU
Brasilia | Reuters — Brazilian meat exporters are considering taking the European Union to the World Trade Organization to challenge restrictions on their beef shipments to one of the world’s top markets, the head of the country’s beef exporters association told Reuters. A new dispute could further harm trade ties frayed by an EU case […] Read more

U.S. grains: Wheat rises to one-week high on dry U.S. Plains
Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures rose 1.2 per cent to a one-week high on Wednesday, extending four-day gains to nearly four per cent on short-covering and concerns about dry weather in U.S. growing regions. Corn and soybeans also firmed, although renewed strength in the dollar capped rallies. At the Chicago Board of Trade, […] Read more
Access to Brazil’s Itajai port to open as truck protest ends
Sao Paulo | Reuters — Protesters have agreed to open access to Brazil’s main poultry exporting port of Itajai in Santa Catarina state, the port said on Wednesday, ending a lingering flashpoint after a two-week truck drivers’ protest. A union of autonomous truck drivers agreed to the port’s proposal to raise payments for transporters inside […] Read more
Brazil truck strike wanes; more soy gets to ports
Sao Paulo | Reuters –– Only a handful of roads remained blocked in Brazil on Tuesday as truck drivers focused their grievances on Brasilia and a key highway in top soy state Mato Grosso opened after two weeks of protests. There were seven protests over rising freight costs affecting federal highways, down from 18 on […] Read more

PotashCorp buys stake in Heringer to expand in Brazil
Sao Paulo | Reuters — Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, the world’s largest fertilizer company by market value, agreed on Monday to pay about $69.8 million for a 9.5 per cent stake in Brazilian rival Fertilizantes Heringer SA, the latest effort by PotashCorp to grow in Latin America’s largest economy. The deal, which is expected to […] Read more