Dialogue between Brazil’s agribusiness sector and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s government needs to be rebuilt, according to Ingo Plöger, president of the Brazilian Agribusiness Association (Abag). Speaking to Folha, Plöger said relations during Lula’s third term had been difficult and called for renewed trust and cooperation after the election.
Plöger said Lula would need to make a significant effort to ease divisions in the country, adding that voters’ choices should be respected. He argued that leaders on both sides must be willing to meet and discuss a longer-term relationship with greater mutual confidence.
Agribusiness has generally been viewed as resistant to Lula. During the campaign, his opponent, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, sought to present himself as closer to rural interests. After losing the election, Bolsonaro left Brazil for the United States, according to the report.
The sector has recorded grain harvests and productivity gains and expanded access to overseas markets. At the same time, it is facing a wave of requests for judicial recovery and concerns over debt. Plöger attributed the financial pressure to a combination of high interest rates and weak international prices, which can leave producers without enough margin to cover cash-flow needs.
He said the challenges have no single solution and called for coordinated measures developed through dialogue and negotiation. During Lula’s third government, the sector opened markets but also faced steep tariffs and the effects of climate problems. Historic floods in Rio Grande do Sul added to the debt burden for some producers in the state.
Producers are also monitoring the risk of El Niño, which could affect agricultural output by changing temperatures and rainfall patterns. Plöger said farmers and livestock producers could also be significantly affected if the six-day workweek with one day off is ended. He pointed to the potential for higher costs and difficulties reorganizing work schedules, noting that tasks such as milking cows, supplying poultry and harvesting coffee cannot simply stop at weekends.
Lula’s government plan describes agribusiness as important to Brazil’s trade balance and economic growth. It pledges to strengthen rural credit, expand resources under the Safra Plan and provide interest rates compatible with the profitability of farming. The document also proposes broadening financing sources through capital markets and agribusiness securities, creating a national program for climate resilience in rural areas, and giving particular attention to rural insurance.
Sources: Folha Mercado.