Argentina will harvest 15 million tonnes of wheat in the 2016/17 crop year, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said on Thursday, up from a prior estimate of 12.5 million tonnes as farmers plant the grain in some areas previously dedicated to soybeans.
The higher forecast reflects an increase in the estimate for wheat acreage to 4.7 million hectares, up from a previous estimate of 4.3 million hectares. The 2016-17 crop year is the first since President Mauricio Macri ditched the wheat export curbs and taxes that the previous government used to ensure ample domestic food supplies.
The opening of the international market to Argentine wheat farmers spurred a massive increase in planting that has cut into the area dedicated to soybeans, the country's main cash crop. The government projects the country's farmers will harvest 15.7 million tonnes of wheat this season, a higher estimate than the grains exchange, versus the 11.3 million tonnes the government says were harvested last year.
Argentine growers are expected to plant 20.3 million hectares with soy this crop year, according to the Agriculture Ministry, short of the 20.6 million hectares dedicated to soy in the 2015/16 season. The Buenos Aires exchange says Argentina growers will plant 19.6 million hectares with soy this year, down from 20.1 million hectares in 2015/16.
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