First, for those international investors interested in Brazilian agribusiness, the good news: the country’s poor infrastructure is crippling the competitiveness of Brazil’s farms. With little or no onsite storage, farmers are forced to ship harvests straight to port – becoming price takers at peak times of supply (and therefore low prices) and incurring peak freight costs. The journey from the interior of the country, which is where most of the agribusiness opportunities are located, is roughly 2,000 kilometres by truck. Roads are poor, railways are virtually non-existent. Delays at ports are costly in time and money. Logistics costs exceed those in other countries such that planting often isn’t economic. Also, regulation is not helping: new rules governing truck drivers’ working conditions are forcing up already sky-high freight costs and the Brazilian government has now restricted foreign ownership of farmland.
