Grain Trail Leads to Brazil
About this special report
Senior reporter Richard Rennie spent a week travelling through Brazil, taking in its arable and beef farming systems. He visited the Mato Grosso state, which is Brazil’s third largest and most productive agricultural state, claiming the bulk of the country’s cattle, corn, cotton and soybean production.
Brazil’s corn powers food and fuel
Corn ethanol production has slotted a useful second crop into farmers’ cycle – and its byproduct has found customers in NZ.
How bamboo is fuelling Brazil’s corn ethanol revolution
Brazil's green energy policy plays back well for local farmers keen to contribute some of their less productive cropping land for biomass growing for extra income.
Happy cows hit corn option on Mato Grosso farm
A Mato Grosso farm has not looked back since adopting DDG for finishing its 7000 cattle.
Estate brews bio defence against pests
A vast Brazilian estate develops its own bio-pesticides in its on-farm bio-reactor.
Brazilian farmers lining up for second-crop systems
Planting a second crop has boosted Brazil’s corn production into double digit annual growth rates.
A bridge builder for Brazilian agriculture
Andrea Verissimo wanted to be on hand when the sleeping giant of her country’s agricultural sector awoke.
More Special Reports
Cyclone Gabrielle: After the Flood
Cyclone Gabrielle: Rebuilding Land and Lives
Cyclone Gabrielle: Road to Recovery
Dairy Input Costs
Dairy South
Dairy's Decade Ahead
DIY Soil Health
Farms, Forests and the Future
Food Security
Future of Sheep Farming
Grain Trail Leads to Brazil
Jaded Leadership: Time to Regroup
Power in Crisis
Rural Leadership
Spotlight on Drench Resistance
Spotlight on Labour
State of Rural Healthcare
Succession: How to step back successfully