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Brazil's 2005 agricultural harvest should attain 119.48 million tons, practically the same as in 2004, when 119.36 million tons of cereals, legumes, and oilseed crops were harvested.
The March estimate, released today by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), indicates that the South was the only region to register a reduction, amounting to 15.77%, in consequence of the drought that is affecting the crops.
The states in the South account for 34.43% of the country's total agricultural production, second only to the states of the Center-West region, responsible for 37.89% of the total. The Southeast contributes 15.42%; the Northeast, 8.90%; and the North, 3.36%.
March's Systematic Survey of Agricultural Production highlights a 7.40% increase in herbaceous cotton production, due to the addition of new areas of cultivation in Bahia, São Paulo, and Goiás, and a 6.09% increase in castor bean production, due to government initiatives on behalf of this product.
The production declines of 3.13% in first harvest beans and 2.89% in soybeans, on the other hand, were influenced by the lack of rainfall in the major producing states.
The IBGE's February estimate projected a 10.09% drop in the 2005 harvest, in comparison with 2004, as a result of climatic difficulties, such as excessive rainfall or drought in the most important centers of production.
Agência Brasil
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