Agriculture

• Friday, May 6th 2011 - 01:42 UTC

  Boosted by bio-fuels Brazil increases soy bean and oil processing-refining capacity

  

  Brazil’s soy bean processing volume increased 7% in 2010 over 2009 while at the same time reducing idle capacity given the larger crop and a jump in the production of bio fuels, according to a release from Abiove, (Brazilian association of vegetable oil industries).

• Tuesday, May 3rd 2011 - 05:20 UTC

  FAO estimates 2011 rice world production up 3%; Latam to rebound 9.2%

  

  Rice production is expected to rise to 480 million tons in 2011, which is 3% higher than a year earlier, due to improved weather conditions, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation said on Monday.

• Tuesday, May 3rd 2011 - 00:41 UTC

  EU/Mercosur trade negotiations resume in Paraguay

  

  Bilateral negotiations for a trade agreement between Mercosur and European Union delegates are scheduled to resume Tuesday in Asunción, Paraguay.

• Tuesday, May 3rd 2011 - 00:32 UTC

  Farmers warn European Parliament of ‘catastrophic impact’ of trade accord with Mercosur

  

  European farmers insisted Monday before the European Parliament on the “catastrophic impact” that a trade agreement with Mercosur could have for the EU agriculture.

• Thursday, April 28th 2011 - 18:48 UTC

  EU report quantifies losses for farmers from a trade accord with Mercosur

  

  A week before the next round of negotiations for an ambitious association and trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur, a paper from the EU Joint Research Study centre, JRS, quantifies the alleged losses of such a deal for European farmers.

• Tuesday, April 26th 2011 - 16:10 UTC

  Paraguay has over a million hectares planted with corn

  

  Paraguay is experiencing a boom in corn with an area planted of over a million hectares compared to 600.000 hectares a year ago, according to the country’s Soybean Farmers’ Association president agronomist Francisco Regis Mereles.

• Monday, April 25th 2011 - 18:59 UTC

  Falklands’ market garden approaches 25th anniversary against all odds

  

  Almost twenty five years after its inception, and despite setbacks primarily brought about by Falklands/Argentine politics, the bustling market garden, Stanley Growers, on East Falkland Islands, now prides itself on being in the top three countries in the cruise ship catering world for the quality of its produce.

• Monday, April 25th 2011 - 07:42 UTC

  Coffee prices at highest since 1977 pushed by poor harvest and weak dollar

  

  Coffee prices topped 3 US dollars a pound in New York for the first time since 1977, as prospects of another production deficit combined with a sliding dollar to encourage fund buying.

• Saturday, April 16th 2011 - 09:41 UTC

  Cuba admits food imports bill is up 25% and “miracles are running out”

  

  Cuba announced Friday that it will have to spend 25% more than its original estimates to pay the cost of food imports due to the international surge in commodity prices.

• Saturday, April 16th 2011 - 02:20 UTC

  EU agriculture impact report before presenting “proposal list” to Mercosur

  

  The European Commission will be presenting in the next weeks a report on the consequences for the European agriculture of a trade agreement with Mercosur, announced EU Agriculture Commissioner Dacian Ciolos following a Thursday meeting of the Agriculture Council in Luxembourg.