United States Department of Agriculture: sown area of soybeans is 22.7 million hectares in 2009 / 10, Brazil.

Brazil's soybean acreage will grow by 1 million hectares to 22.7 million hectares in 2009/10, up 200,000 hectares from October's forecast, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's latest oil outlook report.

Brazilian soybean prices are not much higher than they were in 2008, but planting costs have fallen sharply, improving soybean yields. Heavy rains in soybean producing areas since September have improved soil moisture and created ideal conditions for soybean planting. Brazil's soybean planting is proceeding faster than normal, with about 48 percent of soybean planting completed by the first week of November.

Many farmers in Mato Grosso are planting early-maturing soybeans in the hope of selling them early and at high prices. So they can also double crop corn after the soybean harvest. Farmers have also found that soybeans with short growing cycles cost less to grow.

The USDA expects Brazil to produce 63 million tons of soybeans in 2009/10, compared with 62 million tons in October and 5.7 million tons in 2008.

Brazil's soybean exports in 2009/10 may no longer benefit from Argentina's poor soybean harvest, although the increase prompted USDA to revise Brazil's soybean export figures upward by 300,000 tons to 23.95 million tons. Brazilian soybean processing volumes will also increase due to strong domestic demand for soybean meal and soybean oil.

Brazil's government plans to increase biofuel blending rates, which will further boost domestic soybean oil demand.