Brazilian Soybean - Brazil is the second largest soybean producer after the United States. In the 2014/2015 harvest, the crop occupied an area of 31.57 million hectares, which totaled a production of 95.07 million tons. The average productivity of Brazilian soybeans was 3,011 kg per hectare.
In the late 1960s, two internal factors led Brazil to begin viewing soybeans as a commercial product, a fact that later influenced the global production of the grain. At the time, wheat was the main crop in southern Brazil and soybeans emerged as a summer option in succession to wheat. Brazil also began an effort to produce pork and poultry, generating demand for soybean meal. In 1966, commercial soybean production was already a strategic necessity, and around 500 thousand tons were produced in the country.
The explosion in soybean prices on the world market in the mid-1970s further awakened farmers and the Brazilian government itself. The country had a competitive advantage over other producers: the Brazilian harvest is sold during the American off-season, when prices are at their highest. Since then, the country has had to invest in technology to adapt the crop to Brazilian conditions, a process led by the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation.
The investment in research led to the "tropicalization" of soybeans, allowing for the first time in history the grain to be successfully planted in low-latitude regions, between the Tropic of Capricorn and the equator. This achievement by Brazilian scientists revolutionized the global history of soybeans, and its impact began to be felt by the market from the end of the 1980s and especially in the 1990s, when grain prices began to fall. Currently, the world leaders in soybean production are the United States, Brazil, Argentina, China, India and Paraguay.
Main Types/Specifications of Soybeans
Soybeans are a high-protein plant food that people can prepare and eat in a variety of ways. They belong to the pea family. Soybeans come in a variety of colors, including:
Green soybeans: Young green soybeans are also called edamame. People can steam them and eat them straight from the pod as a snack. Shelled edamame are also available in salads, stir-fries, and soups.
Yellow soybeans: Farmers typically use yellow soybeans to make soy milk, tofu, tempeh, and tamari. They also play a role in the production of soy flour for baking.
Black soybeans: Several Asian food cultures use cooked or fermented black soybeans in traditional dishes. Soy milk and cheese are also options for those looking to replace dairy in their diet.
Soybeans also provide soybean oil, which people can use in cooking or as an ingredient. After removing the oil from soybeans, people can use the remaining material to make food for farm animals and pets. Some manufacturers make protein powders and isoflavone supplements from soybeans. Isoflavones are plant compounds that have a structure similar to estrogen.
There are generally three types of soybeans: GM, conventional, and organic. The former, in its production, offers several types of transgenic soybeans, which are currently under development. The most well-known and commercially grown plant has been given a gene from another organism through biotechnology techniques that can make it tolerant to the use of a herbicide such as glyphosate.
