Farmers Rebuild Global Soy Supplies, Record Production Forecast

May 18, 2023

By Julie Deering

In its May 12 World Agricultural Supply & Demand Estimates report, U.S. Department of Agriculture analysts forecast record global soybean production for the 2023/24 crop year at nearly 410.6 million tons, up almost 11% from last year.

If realized, this will be the largest year-over-year production increase in nearly two decades, shares Jason Grant, W.G. Wysor Professor of Agriculture and Director of the Center for Agricultural Trade at Virginia Tech.

More than half the increase is estimated to come from increased yields in Argentina, after a historic drought. Meanwhile, USDA reports Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay account from more than a quarter of production gains from increased plantings and higher yields across all three countries. U.S. farmers are forecast to plant acreage numbers similar to last year, but projections show higher yields.

“There are always some ups and downs depending on the supply and demand and many different local conditions, says Jim Sutter, U.S. Soybean Export Council Chief Executive Officer. “Currency has challenged some markets limiting imports from what was normal and what is really needed.”

Grant expects with the rebuilding of global grain and oilseed supplies that will normalize soon.

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.