Reuters – Argentine grains farmers warned April 1 about diesel shortages potentially hitting the ongoing harvest of soybeans and corn, the South American country’s two main crops.
Argentina is the world’s largest exporter of soybean oil and meal, and the No. 2 exporter of corn. Harvesting of both crops, which have already been hit by drought and recent frosts, is just getting started with four per cent of soy and 15 per cent of corn collected.
The main rural associations in a statement warned about the lack of diesel needed for tractors and trucks, which comes amid a global energy crunch, rising crude and gas prices, and grains supply bottlenecks linked to the war between Russia and Ukraine.
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“In recent weeks, diesel has become a scarce resource in various locations in the country,” the farm groups said in a joint statement. “For this reason we’ve seen more than notable price rises and scarce availability or rationing.”
The farm bodies called for a contingency plan to solve the issue, while also suggesting the country could use more biofuels, which can be produced from grains such as corn or soy.
The second quarter of the year is the peak harvest season in Argentina for soybeans and corn, which last year registered exports of over $30 billion combined, driven by sales of processed soy.
The Southern Hemisphere autumn is also a time of busy truck traffic, which is the main means of transporting grains in Argentina to the ports around Rosario, the country’s main farming port hub on the banks of the Paraná River.
State oil company YPF had sought to reassure the farm sector March 29 by affirming that fuel supply was assured.
“Through its more than 100 YPF AGRO distributors with a presence throughout the country, the company guarantees access to diesel for agricultural producers,” YPF said in a statement.
Argentina’s 2021-22 farm season was affected by drought at the start of the year that hit crop yields hard. According to the Buenos Aires grains exchange, the soybean harvest will be 42 million tonnes and the corn harvest around 49 million tonnes.
