Multinational Archer Daniels Midland Cohsoya closed its soyabean crusher in Paranagua, Brazil, and will decide whether to reopen the plant early next year, an ADM spokeswoman said on Monday.
"The company will re-evaluate whether to reopen this plant early next year depending on the health of the new crop," ADM spokeswoman Bia Benson said. "There was a violent drop in soya output this year due to the drought in the south."
No other ADM crushers were being closed at this time, she said.
ADM and other crushers operating in Brazil's south have had a hard time finding soyabeans on the market after the drought and have witnessed their profit margins shrink.
ADM announced in April that it was indefinitely closing its Tres Passos crusher in Rio Grande do Sul due largely to the drought in the region which more than halved the crop in Rio Grande do Sul.
The Tres Passos plant operations will also be re-evaluated in early 2006.
Brazilian crushers traditionally close for a few months to perform maintenance at this time of year during the soya planting season, when most of the last crop has been sold and the new one is not yet ready to harvest.
ADM's Paranagua plant has the capacity to crush 1,100 tonnes of soya a day, Benson said. Paranagua is Brazil's main grain port located in the south, about 450 kilometers south of Sao Paulo.
ADM has another crusher operating in neighbouring Santa Catarina state.