If it is true that, for the farmer, soybeans are the most profitable product, for the companies that receive the grains after the gate it is not the same case. This is the conclusion of Consultoria Trigo & Florinhas, which for the second consecutive year compared data on the profitability of cereal producers who receive soy, corn and wheat.
“In the first year, we were shown that wheat had been the one that presented the greatest profitability for this cereal grower, but, at the time, we believed that it was just market circumstances. Today we received data from 2016 from the same company, which had completely different circumstances, but the result was almost the same: soybean profit was 5.1%, corn profit was 11.7% and wheat profit was 11.4% (more than double that of soy). The average gross margin for all grains was 7.5%”, points out T&F.
In the Consultancy's view, cereal growers (and cooperatives, which must have the same profit percentages) should make more effort in planting and marketing wheat appropriately and profitably: “If the farmer reduces the area, as happened this year, both cereal producers and cooperatives (such as companies that supply inputs and seeds) will also reduce their revenue from the sale of inputs (their biggest source of profit), seeds and the provision of various services. So the way forward is simply to do the right thing.”
“The farmer wants a remunerative price. And how do you get it? We know several cooperatives and mills that have an agronomic department that achieve prices well above the average of the rest because they are extremely demanding in determining which seeds to plant and receive in their warehouses. They do not allow the farmer to plant what he wants, without joint planning with the company, under penalty of not receiving what he produces. The more demanding, the greater the profits, because the quality of the flour depends on the quality of the wheat, and non-segregated wheat has no defined quality. So, to sell good flour, you have to plant wheat suitable for that flour. And whoever has control of this wheat will have gold in their hands”, concludes T&F senior analyst, Luiz Carlos Pacheco.
Source: Agrolink
