Brasilia, January 21 - Soybeans, maize, kidney beans, sugarcane and rice account for more than 70 percent of the acreage planted in Brazil, according to a study by the Brazilian Institute for Forestry and Agricultural Management and Certification (Imaflora). Since 2000, soybean acreage has been increasing. In 2017, soybeans accounted for 43.2 percent of the total area, followed by corn at 22.5 percent, sugarcane at 13 percent, beans at 3.9 percent and rice at 2.6 percent.

According to the report, the recent period from 1985 to 2006 was marked by growth in ranching and a strong expansion in agricultural acreage. Between 2006 and 2017, 54.9 percent of the country's 558 regions (the urban group defined by Brazil's National Geographic Statistics Agency) gained more land from agriculture than from ranching, while 29.3 percent gained more land from ranching than from agriculture. During this period, only 15.8 percent of the region's forest area expanded.

Brazil covered 78.7 million hectares of agricultural land in 2017, 26% more than in 2006 and 39% more than in 1988. In terms of production, 2017 saw a 57 percent increase compared to 2006 and an 85 percent increase compared to 1988.

"Overall, between 1988 and 2017, agricultural output grew twice as fast as the expansion of productive acreage, indicating increased productivity during this period," the study notes. "Among other factors, the increase in agricultural planting was mainly explained by the increase in sugarcane acreage and soybean acreage in the Southeast.

Strong growth in international commodity demand has led to increased agricultural production in Brazil. Between 1988 and 2017, soybean production in Brazil increased by 536% and the acreage under cultivation increased by 221%. Corn production increased by 295% and acreage increased by 32%. Sugarcane output increased by 194 percent, and planted area increased by 145 percent. During the same period, the area under rice cultivation decreased by 67 percent and the yield increased by 5.5 percent. Coffee acreage decreased by 40 percent, but production increased by 96 percent as productivity improved.

According to the agency's research, the concentration of export crops directly leads to a decrease in the number of agricultural production units and an increase in the average area. Between 2006 and 2017, the number of agricultural producers in Brazil fell by 2%. The average area owned by each enterprise increased from 64.5 hectares in 2006 to 69.2 hectares in 2017, an increase of 7.4 percent. In southern Brazil, the number of agricultural production enterprises decreased by 15.2 per cent and the average area owned by them increased by 21 per cent, indicating a high concentration of production in the region. "This phenomenon can be explained by the increasing complexity and technical cost of managing agricultural activities. The impact of family farming has been even stronger, with the number of family farms falling by nearly half a million between 2006 and 2017, from 84 percent to 77 percent of the total.

Since 2006, more than half of the agricultural acreage has belonged to a small group of large enterprises.

Brazilian agricultural experts say changes in the country's agricultural landscape are forcing small farmers to expand their acreage and technologically modify their crops to increase returns. Therefore, new public policies aimed at these rural populations are needed to encourage young people to join the rural population and promote the value-added of small-scale agriculture