At berth 206 at the Port of Paranaguá, the ship Aurora SB is docked to unload 35.279 tons of corn. Imported from Argentina, the cereal, which is usually exported through terminals in Paraná, will supply the domestic market, especially the starch industry, the basis for some human food products.
This is the first of four ships already expected with corn to unload at the port of Paraná in the coming months. With the product expected to fail in the second harvest, other imports are expected to take place by the end of the year.
According to the director-president of Portos do Paraná, Luiz Fernando Garcia, based on reports and official publications on the development of corn crops, there is frustration regarding the harvest for the second half of the year, which should also reduce the supply of corn for export. .
“At the same time, domestic demand is increasing and, as a result, industries end up having to import. We should receive even more imported corn for this purpose, considering the expected crop failure for this off-season,” says Garcia.
According to the Director of Operations at Portos do Paraná, Luiz Teixeira da Silva Júnior, this is not the first time that the Port of Paranaguá has received imported corn. “Every time domestic consumption requires it, this operation will occur and the Port of Paranaguá will be able to receive the product and unload it with the same efficiency as we operate the product for export”, he guarantees.
Also according to Teixeira, the product is unloaded in the same way as other bulk imports, such as malt, wheat, barley and even soybeans, which was done last year.
With the help of a crane, on board or at the dock (MHCs), equipped with a type of scoop (grab), the product is removed from the ship's hold and, using a funnel, is poured into the truck bed. “Part of the cargo goes straight inland and the rest is stored in the rear terminals of the Port of Paranaguá”, says Teixeira.
crop
As the Secretary of State for Agriculture and Supply, Norberto Ortigara, points out, Brazil is a major producer of corn, including two harvests of the product, which few places in the world are able to do.
However, according to Ortigara, the second harvest (2021 harvest) suffered problems in Paraná, as well as in some of the main producing states (Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso and Goiás). “It is at risk because it was installed late, due to the delay in the soybean harvest. It is a crop that has high losses due to drought”, he comments.
Despite reports from the National Supply Company (Conab) already pointing to a significant loss, the country continues to be a major exporter, maintaining the prospect of selling 35 million tons of corn this year.
“But with the devaluation of the real and the growth in prices on the world market, corn has become an expensive input for the production of chicken, pork, fish and milk, which work at the limit, with great difficulty”, comments the secretary.
Given this situation, according to him, many agribusinesses are already importing corn, many with tax benefits, because the product, in addition to being scarce, is too expensive. “We must have large imports of the product to sustain the level of production, especially of chicken and pork,” says Ortigara.
According to him, the problem is even more serious in neighboring states. Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul do not have a second corn harvest, like Paraná.
Source: AEN
