Record rainfall in Brazil’s southernmost state, Rio Grande do Sul, in May 2024 caused devastating floods, devastating the country’s agriculture and livestock industries. Flooding has destroyed food stores, halted harvests and damaged soil. Destroyed or cut off infrastructure has also limited the ability to transport food and operate farms.
Governor Eduardo Leite described the rains as one of the worst weather disasters in the state’s history. While local residents had expected the rains, their scale and the resulting damage “was unexpected,” Paulo Black, professor at the University of Rio Grande do Sul’s Institute of Biological Sciences and general coordinator of the Gaucho Institute of Environmental Sciences, told Food Tank.
According to a report by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Brazil ranks in the top five in the production of 34 agricultural commodities and is the world’s largest net exporter of agricultural products. Since 2000, Brazil’s agricultural production has doubled and livestock production has tripled, according to the USDA. And by 2031, Brazil is expected to bring an additional 20 million hectares of arable land under cultivation, which USDA says would be one of the fastest rates of arable land expansion in the world.
Rio Grande do Sul is a major contributor to Brazil’s agricultural production, producing 14% of Brazil’s soybeans, 70% of its rice, and 73% of its oats. According to the Brazilian Animal Protein Association, the state is Brazil’s largest producer of summer corn, and produces 11% of Brazil’s pork and 20% of Brazil’s poultry.
“The flooded state of Rio Grande do Sul is one of Brazil’s largest soybean-producing regions and also a major rice growing area, and both crops are expected to be damaged by this historic flooding,” Joana Colussi, a postdoctoral researcher and lecturer in the University of Illinois’ Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, told Food Tank. “Some crops will rot and be lost, and others will have lower yields than expected.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that between 4 and 20 percent of the state’s soybean crop remains unharvested. And the Rio Grande do Arroz Institute estimated that only 84 percent of the rice harvest was complete when the rains began. Flooding has destroyed tens of thousands of hectares of land, forcing farmers to leave behind. To ensure adequate supplies and prevent price fluctuations, Brazil has temporarily suspended tariffs on rice imports.
As the waters rose, many livestock also died: local pork producers lobbied ACSURS and estimated that 12,600 pigs died in the floods, and local chicken farmers reported losses of at least $5 million in human life alone.
Julia Catao Diaz, a specialist with the Consumer Protection Institute’s Sustainable Consumption Program, told Food Tank that the massive destruction will especially affect family farmers, many of whom she said have lost not only their crops, tools and equipment, but also their homes.
The effects of the floods may continue: Waterlogged soil will make it difficult to plant crops next season and farmers may have to switch to other crops until the soil recovers, said Silvia Masuruha, president of agricultural research institute Embrapa.
The floods also caused severe damage to the state’s infrastructure, hindering the transport of agricultural products and the operation of livestock farms. The rains destroyed roads, bridges, and highways, severely hindering those that were intact. Brazil’s railway company, Rumo, suspended rail service to major ports, disrupting exports and increasing reliance on trucks to transport food. The floods caused 100 closures on 58 roads and bridges, and alternative routes forced trucks to travel hundreds of extra miles, increasing transportation costs and times.
The transport disruptions have hit the pork and poultry sectors particularly hard, with road closures preventing the transport of animal feed, water and employees, forcing 10 processing plants to suspend operations.
Dias also told Food Tank that commodity shortages, production disruptions, and increased logistics costs “will put pressure on prices, leading to food inflation in Brazil.” Taking into account the state’s domestic contributions to multiple commodities, expected losses, and the impact on the upcoming season, the Agriculture Ministry predicts that domestic food prices will rise.
The National Federation of Municipalities has provisionally estimated losses in the agriculture and livestock sector at more than $245 million, and given Brazil’s presence in the global agricultural sector, the impact could ripple around the world. Also, future soybean contracts negotiated on the Chicago Board of Trade have already been affected, according to a USDA report.
In the aftermath of the floods, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has made helping victims his top priority, while also stressing the need for Brazil to better prepare for climate change and extreme weather.
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Photo by Riccardo Staccato, Wikimedia
