Soybean farmers in Brazil are standing-by, ready to get the next crop in the ground, but delays at the port have seed and nutria stalled in transport. Mato Grosso's Producers' Association (Aprosoja) said, "The first rains are falling and many don't have inputs to start their planting."

Your Inputs Monitor reported on the congestion in the Port of Panagua back in August (click here for the story). At that time, officials reported that barges coming in would have to wait up to two months before offloading. That was five weeks ago. Barges waiting to offload then are likely still waiting.

(Photo provided by tnn.com)

Brazil imports 50% of its phosphorous, 75% of its nitrogen and 90% of the potassium it applies each year. Aprosoja cites labor issues at the port for causing the delays. Meanwhile, total soybean acreage for the Mato Grosso region was expected to increase by 11.6%, and safrina corn was also expected to show gains over the previous year.

Meteorologists had forecast good news early on, giving growers hope that delays in seasonal rains would buy them some extra time. But time is running out and the narrow window for inputs is shrinking by the day.

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