In Climate Tech, farmers around the Cantareira water system are offered payments to restore degraded land, Embrapa tests a mobile platform for participatory organic certification, researchers map Brazil’s agricultural water-pollution hotspots, and the country falls behind its target for converting degraded pasture.

In Funding & M&A, The Yield Lab Latam launches a Brazil-focused AI-first AgTech fund, Yara invests in real-time soil-testing startup Stenon, Brazil’s oldest agricultural cooperative considers liquidation, Mantiqueira prepares a US$100 million CPR-F issue, and Riza sells a Mato Grosso farm for US$40 million.

And in Macro & Markets, Brazil’s Supreme Court reverses course on pre-2018 Funrural charges, new research finds that only 15.4% of family farms access rural credit, and organized crime creates growing risks for the country’s agricultural trade.

AgTech

• iBoi Targets One Million Connected Cattle

• Brazil’s Gene-Editing Pipeline Reaches 109 Agricultural Products

• Barchart Adapts Commodity AI Assistant for WhatsApp

• PUCPR Builds Living Laboratory for AgTech Testing

Climate Tech

• Cantareira Farmers Offered Up to US$2,600 per Restored Hectare

• Embrapa Tests Mobile Organic-Certification Platform

• Embrapa Maps Agricultural Water-Pollution Hotspots

• Brazil Falls Behind Its Degraded-Pasture Conversion Target

Funding & M&A

• The Yield Lab Latam Launches Brazil-Focused AI-First AgTech Fund

• Yara Invests in Real-Time Soil-Testing AgTech Stenon

• Brazil’s Oldest Agricultural Cooperative Considers Liquidation

• Mantiqueira Plans US$100 Million Direct CPR-F Issue

• Riza Sells Mato Grosso Farm for US$40 Million

Macro & Markets

• Supreme Court Reverses Course on Pre-2018 Funrural Charges

• Only 15.4% of Brazil’s Family Farms Access Rural Credit

• Organized Crime Creates New Risks for Brazil’s Agricultural Trade

AgTech

iBoi Targets One Million Connected Cattle — Brazilian startup iBoi is scaling electronic identification designed to turn individual animals into traceable, financeable assets. It has ordered 60,000 fifth-generation tags and aims to reach 300,000 cattle in 2027 and one million within three years. Private farm networks supplied by IoTera connect the tags, while the resulting data could help producers demonstrate herd ownership and support cattle-backed rural credit. Source: AgFeed

Brazil’s Gene-Editing Pipeline Reaches 109 Agricultural Products — Brazil’s biosafety regulator, CTNBio, has classified 109 gene-edited agricultural products as non-GMOs since creating a dedicated pathway in 2018. The pipeline includes crops, microorganisms and animal applications developed using techniques such as CRISPR. The regulatory distinction can substantially reduce development time and costs compared with conventional GMO approval, opening gene editing to more Brazilian research institutions and smaller companies. Source: AgFeed

Barchart Adapts Commodity AI Assistant for WhatsApp — Agricultural market-data company Barchart is preparing a WhatsApp version of Carl, its conversational AI assistant, for Brazilian farmers and agribusinesses. Users will be able to request commodity prices, market intelligence and other information through the platform already central to rural communication. Barchart’s Brazilian revenue has increased from approximately US$800,000 to US$2 million over two years as the company localizes its products and datasets. Source: AgFeed

PUCPR Builds Living Laboratory for AgTech Testing — Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná is investing approximately US$800,000 in an innovation hub located on a 200-hectare working farm. Scheduled to open in March 2027, the facility will allow startups to test technologies under commercial farming conditions while connecting them with researchers, students and agricultural companies. The university has signed nine letters of intent and is negotiating with another 13 prospective participants. Source: Startupi

Climate Tech

Cantareira Farmers Offered Up to US$2,600 per Restored Hectare — Farmers in eight São Paulo municipalities around the Cantareira water system can receive up to US$1,800 per hectare over three years for restoring degraded land, plus a performance bonus of approximately US$800. The first call aims to restore 36 hectares and conserve another 108, using payments for environmental services to improve water security and encourage landowners to protect strategically important areas. Source: CNN Brasil

Embrapa Tests Mobile Organic-Certification Platform — Embrapa is testing a mobile platform designed to replace paper records in Brazil’s participatory organic-certification system. Developed with small farmers and certification organizations, it will support farm visits, compliance records and document sharing from the field. Participatory schemes account for approximately 65% of Brazil’s registered organic producers, giving the platform the potential to reduce administrative work and make certification more accessible. Source: Food Forum

Embrapa Maps Agricultural Water-Pollution Hotspots — Embrapa has mapped the Brazilian regions most vulnerable to diffuse water pollution from agriculture, identifying broad areas across Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Goiás and Matopiba, together with localized hotspots in Paraná and São Paulo. The assessment combines fertilizer deliveries, livestock concentration, sugarcane fertigation, rainfall, water balance and soil erodibility, helping policymakers target monitoring and mitigation where runoff risks are highest. Source: Embrapa

Brazil Falls Behind Its Degraded-Pasture Conversion Target — Brazil would need to recover or convert around four million hectares of degraded pasture annually to meet its 40-million-hectare target by 2033, compared with a historical pace of approximately 1.3 million hectares. The central constraints are not land availability or investor interest, but the shortage of investment-ready projects, technical support and financing structures accessible to smaller producers. Source: The AgriBiz

Funding & M&A

The Yield Lab Latam Launches Brazil-Focused AI-First AgTech Fund — The Yield Lab Latam is raising a US$40 million fund dedicated to AI-first AgTech companies in Brazil, with an initial US$10 million closing targeted for March 2027. The fund expects to invest between US$200,000 and US$1 million in approximately 25 startups across conversational AI, agricultural fintech, trading, logistics and biological inputs. It will also support selected international companies entering the Brazilian market. Source: Valor

Yara Invests in Real-Time Soil-Testing AgTech Stenon — Yara Growth Ventures has taken an undisclosed minority stake in German AgTech Stenon through a second closing of its Series B round. Stenon’s portable technology analyzes soil nutrients in real time without sending samples to a laboratory and is already operating in Brazil. The investment gives Yara exposure to technology that could improve fertilizer recommendations and nitrogen-use efficiency while strengthening its digital services for farmers. Source: AgFeed

Brazil’s Oldest Agricultural Cooperative Considers Liquidation — Cotribá has called members to vote on dissolution and extrajudicial liquidation while continuing selected operations. The Rio Grande do Sul cooperative reportedly owes approximately US$280 million, with exposure extending across farmers, more than 30 financial institutions, agribusiness receivables certificates and a Fiagro investment fund. Its difficulties highlight how agricultural credit stress can spread from producers into cooperatives and capital-market structures. Source: AgFeed

Mantiqueira Plans US$100 Million Direct CPR-F Issue — Egg producer Mantiqueira is preparing a seven-year public issue of Financial Rural Product Notes, or CPR-Fs, debt instruments linked to agricultural production. The transaction will be indexed at 94% of Brazil’s DI interbank rate and backed by approximately 2.65 million boxes of eggs. By issuing the securities directly, Mantiqueira is testing a new route for large agricultural companies to raise long-term capital without using a conventional CRA structure. Source: AgFeed

Riza Sells Mato Grosso Farm for US$40 Million — Riza Asset’s Terrax fund has agreed to sell a 5,300-hectare farm in Mato Grosso for approximately US$40 million, potentially rising to US$46 million. The structure combines cash, a property exchange and instalments, giving the fund liquidity to pursue investments offering better expected returns. The transaction provides a useful reference point for farmland valuations and shows how specialist agricultural funds are actively recycling capital between rural assets. Source: AgFeed

Macro & Markets

Supreme Court Reverses Course on Pre-2018 Funrural Charges — Brazil’s Supreme Court has ruled that Funrural contributions charged to individual producers before 2018 were unconstitutional, reversing its earlier position. Funrural is a payroll-style social-security levy applied to gross rural sales. The decision creates estimated fiscal exposure of US$3.4 billion, although prescription periods and possible limits on the ruling’s retroactive effect mean the eventual benefit for producers and meatpackers remains uncertain. Source: AgFeed

Only 15.4% of Brazil’s Family Farms Access Rural Credit — Research from the World Resources Institute found that only 15.4% of Brazilian family farms access rural credit and 18.2% receive technical assistance. Family farmers represent 77% of agricultural establishments but occupy only 23% of agricultural land. The figures underline how limited access to finance and advice can slow productivity gains, technology adoption and climate adaptation among smaller producers. Source: AgFeed

Organized Crime Creates New Risks for Brazil’s Agricultural Trade — An Insper study warns that organized crime is becoming more deeply embedded in Brazilian agricultural supply chains through counterfeit inputs, cargo theft, illegal mining, money laundering and logistics networks. Illicit pesticides are estimated to generate US$4 billion annually, while seed piracy costs the sector approximately US$2 billion. Beyond direct losses, criminal involvement could expose exporters and financial institutions to sanctions, traceability failures and reputational risks. Source: AgFeed

Thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

In Climate Tech, IKEA backs regenerative coffee research in the Cerrado Mineiro, a Mato Grosso carrier invests US$100 million in electric grain trucks, improved pollination could add US$840 million annually to São Paulo agriculture, Brazil designs a tradable SAF certificate, and regenerative sugarcane delivers promising early results.

In Funding & M&A, BioFirst takes full control of Biotrop, the latest Eco Invest auction could direct US$10 billion into green industry, and Möbius uses an unusual farm buyback structure to restructure distressed agricultural credit.

And in Macro & Markets, BHP targets Brazil with output from its US$15.3 billion Canadian potash project, rural judicial recoveries rise 66%, and Fiagro issuance accelerates as Brazil’s CRA market contracts.

AgTech

• BioinFood Secures US$1.6m to Develop AI-Assisted Yeast Biologicals

• Ibama Promises Faster Bioinput Reviews Once New Law Is Regulated

• Corteva Positions Brazil as a Global Biologicals Hub

• Agricultural Drone Growth Runs into Operator Shortage

Climate Tech

• IKEA Backs Regenerative Coffee Research in the Cerrado Mineiro

• Mato Grosso Carrier Invests US$100m in Electric Grain Trucks

• Closing São Paulo’s Pollination Gap Could Add US$840m Annually

• Brazil Designs Tradable Certificate for Sustainable Aviation Fuel

• Regenerative Sugarcane Trial Links Higher Costs to Higher Yields

Funding & M&A

• BioFirst Takes Full Control of Brazilian Biologicals Company Biotrop

• Eco Invest Auction Channels Up to US$10bn into Green Industry

• Möbius Uses US$28m Farm Buyback Structure for Distressed Credit

Macro & Markets

• BHP Positions US$15.3bn Potash Mine for Brazil’s Market

• Rural Judicial Recoveries Rise 66% as Credit Stress Deepens

• Fiagro Issuance Surges as Brazil’s CRA Market Contracts

AgTech

BioinFood Secures US$1.6 Million to Develop AI-Assisted Yeast Biologicals — BioinFood has secured US$1.6 million in Finep financing for a three-year program using metabolic engineering and AI to develop yeast-derived molecules for agricultural biologicals. The company wants to use yeast as a production platform for biofertilizers, biostimulants and biocontrol products, moving from laboratory proof of concept into greenhouse and field trials. It also plans to offer its platform as an R&D service to agricultural-input manufacturers. Source: AgFeed

Ibama Promises Faster Bioinput Reviews Once New Law Is Regulated — Ibama says environmental reviews for bioinputs currently take around six months, half the statutory limit, and could become faster once Brazil completes the regulation of its Bioinputs Law. The agency’s workload has increased by more than 70% in four years as biological products gain market share. Clearer responsibilities and procedures could shorten development timelines, although the implementing decree was still awaiting publication. Source: AgFeed

Corteva Positions Brazil as a Global Biologicals Hub — Corteva plans to use Brazil as a development and export platform for biological products as it integrates Stoller and Symborg into its global crop-protection business. The company has 12 new technologies in its Brazilian pipeline, including five biological products, and expects biologicals to account for one-third of the global crop-protection market within a decade. Brazil’s scale, year-round cropping and high adoption make it an important testing and commercialization base. Source: AgFeed

Agricultural Drone Growth Runs into Operator Shortage — Brazil has around 13,000 officially registered agricultural drones, although industry estimates suggest the operating fleet may already exceed 60,000. Adoption is accelerating as larger models carry up to 300 litres, but a survey of 40 companies found that 85% struggle to recruit qualified operators. Training and regulation could therefore become bigger constraints than hardware as drones take on more spraying and field-management tasks. Source: InfoMoney

Climate Tech

IKEA Backs Regenerative Coffee Research in the Cerrado Mineiro — IKEA has invested approximately US$580,000 in a project studying the environmental and productive benefits of regenerative coffee farming. Managed by Rainforest Alliance with the monteCCer cooperative, the initiative covers 11 producers and 1,100 hectares, using soil biology, carbon cycling and pest monitoring to evaluate different practices. The project, which began in late 2024, has been extended for another year, while IKEA considers purchasing coffee from participating farms. Source: The AgriBiz

Mato Grosso Carrier Invests US$100 Million in Electric Grain Trucks — Grupo Navarini plans to deploy 251 electric heavy trucks from 2027 on grain routes connecting Mato Grosso with northern export terminals. The vehicles will travel distances of up to 1,400 kilometres, supported by dedicated charging infrastructure. The investment will create Latin America’s largest heavy electric-truck fleet and test whether electrification can work on the long, remote routes that underpin Brazil’s grain exports. Source: AgFeed

Closing São Paulo’s Pollination Gap Could Add US$840 Million Annually — Improving crop pollination could add approximately US$840 million a year to São Paulo’s agricultural production, according to research involving BIOTA Síntese, USP and state environmental authorities. The study highlights the economic value of maintaining native vegetation and pollinator habitats close to farms. São Paulo is also expanding stingless-bee colonies in protected areas and supporting beekeeping through environmental-payment programs. Source: Fundação Florestal

Brazil Designs Tradable Certificate for Sustainable Aviation Fuel — Brazilian regulators are developing the CS-SAF certificate to record the volume, feedstock, production process and carbon intensity of sustainable aviation fuel. Its book-and-claim structure would allow airlines and companies to buy the environmental benefits separately from the physical fuel, potentially expanding demand for ethanol, vegetable oils and agricultural residues. Final rules must still address exports, corporate buyers and the risk of counting the same emissions reduction twice. Source: Capital Reset

Regenerative Sugarcane Trial Links Higher Costs to Higher Yields — Beggio Lorenzo reported sugarcane productivity of 129 tonnes per hectare after introducing biological inputs, crop rotation, soil restoration and agroforestry elements across a 300-hectare operation. The company spends more on regenerative management but says improved yields generated a 35% return on the additional investment. The results offer a useful commercial case study, although they are self-reported by a single farming business without an independent comparison group. Source: AgFeed

Funding & M&A

BioFirst Takes Full Control of Brazilian Biologicals Company Biotrop — Belgium’s BioFirst Group has acquired the remaining 14.71% of Biotrop, completing the takeover that began with its US$560 million purchase of approximately 85% in 2023. Full ownership gives BioFirst control of one of Brazil’s largest biological-input platforms, with capacity to produce 23 million litres of bacteria-based products and 600 tonnes of fungi annually. The value of the latest transaction was not disclosed. Source: AgFeed

Eco Invest Auction Channels Up to US$10 Billion into Green Industry — Brazil’s latest Eco Invest auction combined US$2.6 billion in public catalytic capital with proposed private commitments of US$7.3 billion. Winning banks plan to finance green fertilizers, bioinputs, alternative proteins, sustainable aviation fuel, biomaterials and industrial decarbonization. At least 10% must support technology development, university partnerships or international technology acquisition. The US$10 billion represents potential mobilization rather than money already deployed. Source: Capital Reset

Möbius Uses US$28 Million Farm Buyback Structure for Distressed Credit — Möbius Capital has acquired a 4,000-hectare farm in Sinop through a Fiagro, an investment fund focused on agriculture, while giving its financially distressed former owner four years to repurchase the property. The producer entered judicial recovery with approximately US$27 million in debt, and the farm is now leased to third parties. The structure combines land ownership, leasing and a potential business recovery in a single transaction. Source: AgFeed

Macro & Markets

BHP Positions US$15.3 Billion Potash Mine for Brazil’s Market — BHP sees Brazil as a priority market for output from its Jansen potash project in Canada, which is expected to reach annual capacity of 8.5 million tonnes after both stages are fully operational. Brazil consumes approximately 13.5 million tonnes of potash annually and imports 96%, leaving farmers exposed to exchange rates, logistics and geopolitical disruptions. BHP has not yet disclosed firm supply contracts or the volume destined for Brazil. Source: AgFeed

Rural Judicial Recoveries Rise 66% as Credit Stress Deepens — Some 1,263 Brazilian farmers entered judicial recovery—a court-supervised debt restructuring process—during the first half of 2026, an increase of 66% from the previous year. Opea expects cases to peak between late 2026 and early 2027 as high interest rates, tighter credit and weak commodity margins affect farm cash flow. Rising defaults could constrain new lending and increase consolidation among producers and agricultural suppliers. Source: AgFeed

Fiagro Issuance Surges as Brazil’s CRA Market Contracts — XP expects issuance of CRAs—securities backed by agricultural receivables—to fall to roughly one-third of its 2025 level, while Fiagro agricultural-fund issuance increased 128% to US$792 million in the first four months of 2026. Investors are moving towards managed funds that offer diversified portfolios and stronger oversight as concerns about defaults grow. The change could reshape how private capital reaches agricultural businesses. Source: AgFeed

More than 3,500 investors, founders and agriculture executives follow the future of Brazilian agriculture with BAR Brief.

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

Share

Over the past year, a growing number of biosolutions companies from the US and Europe have arrived in Brazil. They are working across crop protection, soil health, livestock, biological measurement and renewable energy.

Brazil gives them plenty of reasons to come. It offers year-round biological pressure, several growing cycles, enormous farms and one of the world’s largest agricultural markets.

For venture-backed companies, there is another attraction. Brazil may be one of the few agricultural markets large enough to support the growth their investors expect.

For these companies, Brazil offers much more than a place to test a product. It has the scale to turn a promising technology into a venture-scale business.

Search for Scale

Biological products have attracted significant investment over the past decade, driven by the promise that crop protection, animal health and soil technologies can take market share from conventional chemistry as concerns around resistance, environmental impact and sustainability grow.

Commercial growth, however, has often proved slower than expected in Europe and North America. Farmers have short planting windows, regulation takes time and biological performance can vary under field conditions.

In Brazil, the market is already growing quickly. Sales of biological inputs surpassed US$1.2 billion in 2025, up 15% from the previous year. The total area treated with biological products, including repeat applications on the same land, grew by 28%.

This impressive growth has caught the attention of foreign biotech startups. US-based GreenLight Biosciences entered Brazil in 2025 with an RNA-based product designed to control agricultural pests.

The company later received US$25 million from climate investor Just Climate to support the commercialisation of its agricultural platform, with Brazil playing a central role in that expansion.

Ascribe Bioscience, a Yield Lab portfolio company, has also chosen Brazil as the first market for its crop protection technology. The US startup raised a US$12 million Series A backed by investors including Acre Venture Partners, Corteva and Syngenta Group Ventures.

Its lead product uses naturally occurring molecules from the soil microbiome to strengthen plants’ immune response. Starting in Brazil gives Ascribe access to major crops, high disease pressure and enough acreage to build meaningful revenue if the product performs.

Brazil’s potential extends well beyond crops. US animal-health biotech BiomEdit raised US$18.4 million in 2025 and acquired technology assets from UK-based Folium Science, including a platform for developing engineered biological products for livestock.

BiomEdit already has a poultry feed additive approved in Brazil and plans to launch two additional products in the country in 2027. Brazil’s position as the world’s largest exporter of chicken and beef gives animal-health companies access to production systems with genuine global scale.

Bioenergy provides another route to growth. Finnish biorefining company Chempolis is working with Brazil’s 4WOOD Biotech on a plant designed to turn bamboo into second-generation ethanol, lignin and other bioproducts.

The project is still moving through feasibility studies and discussions with investors. Its premise captures the Brazilian opportunity: abundant biomass, land suited to high-yield feedstocks and a domestic economy already comfortable with biofuels.

At the other end of the scale, Honeywell has been selected to provide ethanol-to-jet technology for a proposed Petrobras facility in São Paulo. The project could produce up to 10,000 barrels of sustainable aviation fuel per day, showing how biological feedstocks can support industrial opportunities far beyond the farm.

Built for Biology

Brazil’s tropical conditions create an unusually demanding environment for biological technologies. Heat, humidity, acidic soils and constant pressure from insects, fungi and nematodes provide plenty of opportunities to prove whether a product works.

Farmers can also plant two or even three crops in the same year. That gives companies more chances to run trials, improve formulations and generate data than they would get from a single annual growing season.

Scale shortens the journey from pilot to commercial deployment. A successful trial with one large producer, cooperative or agribusiness can open access to tens of thousands of hectares.

Brazil also has decades of experience using biology in agriculture. Inoculants are widely used in soybean production, biological pest control is well established and on-farm production has introduced many growers to microorganisms as agricultural tools.

The next challenge is precision, or, more specifically, bio-precision. Biological products need better information about what is happening in the soil, inside the plant and across large production systems.

US soil intelligence company EarthOptics has operated in Brazil since 2023 and says its technology has already been used across more than 600,000 hectares with around 700 producers. It combines sensors, soil sampling and data analysis to create detailed maps of soil conditions, which could make biological applications more targeted and their results easier to measure.

Dutch company Veridi is approaching the problem through diagnostics. It established a Brazilian operation in early 2026 and has developed a proprietary robotic microscope that scans soil samples and uses AI to identify nematode genera and species.

The system can process samples much faster and more consistently than the manual microscopy commonly used today. In Brazil, where nematodes are a major source of crop losses, faster identification could help farmers choose the right treatment before the damage spreads.

Established companies are reaching a similar conclusion. Rovensa Next has invested in local fermentation and research capacity, including a pilot plant in São Paulo that can help develop biological products for tropical agriculture and other global markets.

Tropical Trials

Brazil offers a large opportunity, although breaking into the market is rarely straightforward. The country is often treated as a single agricultural market, when in practice it is a collection of regions with different crops, climates, farm sizes, distribution systems and commercial relationships.

A product that performs well in the soybean fields of Mato Grosso may need a different formulation, application method or sales channel in Paraná. Results in sugarcane provide little indication of how easily the same company can move into coffee, citrus, vegetables or livestock.

Reaching farmers across such a diverse market requires the right local distribution strategy. Foreign companies can build their own commercial teams, work through established distributors or partner with a large agricultural input company, and each option involves different costs, margins and levels of control.

Building a local team takes time and significant capital, while distributors already manage crowded product portfolios. Larger partners can provide market access and credibility, although their commercial priorities may move more slowly than a venture-backed company needs.

Regulation and registration add another layer of cost and complexity. Data from Europe or the US may support the technical case for a product, but Brazilian farmers and regulators still expect evidence that it performs under local tropical conditions.

Price also matters in a market where farm budgets are under pressure from high interest rates, volatile commodity prices and expensive inputs. Farmers will try a new product when it solves an urgent problem and offers a clear return, while broader claims around sustainability or soil health may take several seasons to prove.

This extended path from field trial to repeat sales explains why capital is so important. Foreign companies need enough runway to remain in the market through several growing cycles while building local leadership, Portuguese-language support and relationships with farmers, cooperatives, researchers and distributors.

Those that make it through can build more than a Brazilian operation. They can develop products proven under some of the toughest agricultural conditions in the world, creating evidence and capabilities that can later support expansion into other tropical markets.

This is the real trial by tropics. Brazil offers the scale needed to build a venture-sized biosolutions business, while demanding the capital, patience and local knowledge required to reach it.

Thanks for reading.
KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with more than 30 years’ experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in AgriFood and Climate Tech startups in Latin America.

In Climate Tech, Courageous Land begins deploying BNDES financing for a US$68 million agroforestry project in Roraima, better soil management raises soybean productivity by 11.1% per level, a new model sharply increases the estimated water footprint of sugarcane herbicides, and biomass supply emerges as a bottleneck for corn-ethanol expansion.

In Funding & M&A, Céleres incorporates AI company Arkéra, Caramuru secures US$20 million for biodiesel investments, Zen-Noh completes its acquisition of 30% of Grupo Cereal, and BrasilAgro resumes domestic land sales with a US$19 million deal in Bahia.

And in Macro & Markets, China imposes an additional 55% tariff on Brazilian beef above its annual quota, extreme drought spreads ahead of a potentially very strong El Niño, expensive credit pushes larger farms towards structured CPR financing, and agricultural-input retailers rethink their business models.

AgTech

• Grão Direto Attracts Marubeni to Its Brazilian Grain Platform

• Vylor Launches with a “CRISPR First” Strategy for Brazil

• Embrapa Builds Brazil’s First Integrated Multiomics Platform

Climate Tech

• Courageous Land Secures BNDES Funding for Agroforestry Project

• Better Soil Management Raises Soybean Productivity by 11.1%

• New Model Raises Sugarcane Herbicides’ Water Footprint 116-Fold

• Biomass Supply Becomes a Bottleneck for Corn-Ethanol Expansion

Funding & M&A

• Céleres Incorporates AI Company Arkéra

• Caramuru Secures US$20 Million for Biodiesel Investments

• Zen-Noh Completes Acquisition of 30% of Grupo Cereal

• BrasilAgro Resumes Land Sales with US$19 Million Bahia Deal

Macro & Markets

• China’s 55% Additional Tariff Takes Effect on Brazilian Beef

• Extreme Drought Spreads across Brazil Ahead of El Niño

• Expensive Credit Pushes Farms towards Structured CPR Financing

• Brazil’s Ag-Input Retail Model Enters a New Consolidation Phase

AgTech

Grão Direto Attracts Marubeni to Its Brazilian Grain Platform — Marubeni Brasil has joined Grão Direto’s platform to digitalize its origination of soybeans and corn. The Japanese trading group’s Brazilian operation handles between three million and four million tons of grain annually, while volumes traded through Grão Direto have grown twelvefold since 2021, reaching 12 million tonnes last year. The agreement brings another major global trader into Brazil’s expanding digital grain ecosystem. Source: AgFeed

Vylor Launches with a “CRISPR First” Strategy for Brazil — Corteva’s newly independent seeds and genetics business has launched with Brazil expected to become its largest global market. Vylor plans to almost double its share of soybean-technology licensing to 30% by 2030 while expanding its leadership in corn. Its strategy combines a century of genetic material with gene editing, data and AI, potentially reducing the development of new crop traits from around ten years to as little as two. Source: AgFeed

Embrapa Builds Brazil’s First Integrated Multiomics Platform for Bioproducts — Embrapa has combined metabolomics, proteomics and fluxomics to map and optimize how yeasts convert sugars into high-value chemical compounds. Developed with Germany’s Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, the platform could support more efficient production of renewable chemicals, biological ingredients and microbial inputs. The research strengthens Brazil’s biological-engineering capabilities, although it remains an enabling platform rather than a commercial product. Source: Embrapa

Climate Tech

BNDES Backs Courageous Land’s US$68 Million Agroforestry Project — BNDES has released the first tranche from a US$23 million Fundo Clima (Climate Fund) loan supporting Courageous Land’s project in Roraima. The company plans to convert 2,000 hectares of degraded pasture into agroforestry systems combining coffee, cocoa, açaí, banana, black pepper and native timber species. The US$68 million project will include nurseries and processing infrastructure, plant around 9.7 million seedlings, create more than 600 jobs and remove an estimated 33,900 tonnes of carbon annually. Source: CNN Brasil

Better Soil Management Raises Soybean Productivity by 11.1% — An Embrapa study covering 28 harvests and more than 4,300 georeferenced observations found that soybean productivity increased by an average of 11.1% with each improvement in soil-management level. The classification considers factors including soil cover, crop diversity, acidity and the time since mechanical disturbance. The results support incorporating soil-management quality into Zarc climate-risk assessments, agricultural insurance and credit decisions. Source: Embrapa

New Model Raises Sugarcane Herbicides’ Estimated Water Footprint 116-Fold — An Embrapa model that considers the combined effects and mechanisms of action of 17 sugarcane herbicides produced a grey-water-footprint estimate around 116 times higher than the conventional product-by-product method. The result could improve environmental risk assessments and help growers select combinations with lower potential impact. It represents the estimated dilution required under the model—not evidence that measured ecological damage is 116 times greater. Source: Embrapa

Biomass Supply Becomes a Bottleneck for Corn-Ethanol Expansion — Brazil’s corn-ethanol capacity is expanding faster than the planted forests needed to power its biorefineries. A new plant can be built in 12 to 24 months, while eucalyptus requires six to seven years before harvesting, forcing companies to secure biomass well before construction. The mismatch could increase costs, delay projects and weaken the sector’s lower-carbon credentials if mills turn to less sustainable sources of boiler fuel. Source: AgFeed

Funding & M&A

Céleres Incorporates AI Company Arkéra — Brazilian agribusiness consultancy Céleres has incorporated Arkéra Intelligence through a share-swap transaction. The combination will connect Céleres’ 24 years of agricultural data and market knowledge with Arkéra’s AI models, reducing the time required for some long-term analyses from four months to around ten days. The companies also plan to offer subscription-based intelligence products under a “knowledge as a service” model. Financial terms were not disclosed. Source: AgFeed

Caramuru Secures US$20 Million for Biodiesel Investments — Caramuru Alimentos has approved a US$20 million financing agreement with Rabobank for investments in its three biodiesel plants in Goiás and Mato Grosso. Brazil’s fifth-largest biodiesel producer currently has annual production of around 550 million litres. The financing reinforces biofuels as the company’s main growth platform, although the loan’s maturity, cost and guarantees—and the precise investments planned for each plant—were not disclosed. Source: AgFeed

Zen-Noh Completes Acquisition of 30% of Grupo Cereal — Japan’s Zen-Noh has completed its acquisition of 30% of Grupo Cereal following approval from Cade. The Goiás-based company receives around two million tonnes of soybeans and corn annually and operates in grain origination, agricultural inputs, soybean processing and biodiesel. The new shareholder is expected to support Grupo Cereal’s US$160 million expansion programme and strengthen its access to Asian markets. The transaction value was not disclosed. Source: AgFeed

BrasilAgro Resumes Land Sales with US$19 Million Bahia Deal — BrasilAgro has sold 1,753 productive hectares of Fazenda Rio do Meio in western Bahia for US$19 million, equivalent to 425 sacks of soybeans per productive hectare. The sale ends a year-long pause in the company’s domestic land transactions and is expected to generate a pre-tax gain of approximately US$10 million. Most of the purchase price will be paid through annual soybean-linked instalments. Source: AgFeed

Macro & Markets

China’s 55% Additional Tariff Takes Effect on Brazilian Beef — Brazil reached China’s annual duty-protected quota of 1.1 million tonnes on September 29, triggering an additional 55% tariff on subsequent shipments from October 1. China bought 48% of Brazil’s beef exports last year, worth US$8.9 billion, making the measure a significant threat to trade flows and processor margins. The additional tariff applies only to volumes above the quota and comes on top of the regular 12% import duty. Source: Exame Agro

Extreme Drought Spreads across Brazil Ahead of El Niño — The number of Brazilian municipalities experiencing extreme drought rose from four to 24 in one month, while those under severe drought increased from 153 to 197. The deterioration comes as Inmet estimates a 95% probability that El Niño will reach very strong intensity between October and December. The combination raises planting, water and fire risks during the opening months of the 2026/27 grain season. Source: Exame Agro

Costly Credit Pushes Farms Toward Structured CPRs — High interest rates and more selective banks are pushing larger agricultural businesses toward customized financing through Cédulas de Produto Rural (CPRs), instruments backed by agricultural production. Transactions can exceed US$4 million and run for five years, with terms based on collateral, repayment schedules and project cash flow. The trend broadens options for established producers but could widen the financing gap for smaller farms lacking assets or specialist advice. Source: CNN Brasil

Brazil’s Agricultural-Input Retail Model Enters a New Consolidation Phase — Nutrien’s withdrawal from retail in São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul, alongside financial distress at AgroGalaxy and Lavoro, is exposing the weaknesses of distributors that combined rapid expansion with generous farmer credit. Industry executives expect the next consolidation cycle to favour integrated service hubs offering inputs, finance, grain origination and agronomic support rather than traditional counter sales. Scale alone is giving way to tighter credit control, systems integration and operational efficiency. Source: Exame Agro

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Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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A few months ago, I wrote about what I called the “pilot gap”: the distance between testing a promising new technology and actually putting it to work inside an agribusiness.

My conclusion at the time was that agriculture probably didn’t need more AI pilots, better-prepared ones.

Since then, our team at The Yield Lab Latam has been speaking with companies across the agrifood sector as we developed our first AI Readiness Program. We wanted to better understand what was stopping companies from moving from interest in AI to adoption, and what could be done differently before a pilot even began.

We expected to hear a lot about technology and data, and we did. But some of the more interesting obstacles had little to do with either. Companies struggled with deciding where to start. Pilots lacked clear measures of success. Projects lost momentum when people changed roles. Internal processes weren’t always ready for the technology being tested. And, quite often, when we started a conversation about AI, the immediate response was to bring in the technology or IT team.

AI is obviously a technology, but that doesn’t necessarily make it a technology department problem. Many of the decisions that determine whether it creates value are really management decisions that need to be made much earlier.

In the Weeds

Before discussing models, data architecture or startups, someone needs to ask what the company is actually trying to improve. Where is it losing time or money? Which decisions could be made better or faster? Where could a relatively small improvement have a meaningful financial or operational impact?

One of the best challenges we heard during our conversations barely mentioned technology. The company essentially knew the result it wanted: it had a process that took a certain amount of time and wanted to achieve the same outcome in a fraction of it.

That gave us something more useful to work with than simply asking where AI could be applied.

Management needs to look across the business before getting into the technological weeds. Not every problem needs AI, and some processes may not yet be ready for it. In other cases, a relatively simple application could already deliver value today. Working out where those opportunities sit requires a good understanding of the business before getting into the technology.

This is made more difficult by how quickly AI itself is moving. A use case that looked unrealistic a year ago may be relatively straightforward today, while something we dismiss now could become viable next year. A rigid three-year AI roadmap could become outdated surprisingly quickly.

Companies need a clear idea of what they want to improve, but an open mind about how they get there.

Pilot Purgatory

Some of the reasons projects stalled during our conversations were surprisingly mundane. A pilot could have a champion, gain approval and demonstrate that the technology worked, only to lose momentum when the person responsible moved to another role. Another could remain alive indefinitely because nobody had established a clear measure for deciding whether it had succeeded or failed.

One company had a particularly good name for these lingering projects: monstrinhos, little monsters that nobody quite knows what to do with.

Other projects became bogged down in contracts, security requirements or integration issues that could have been anticipated earlier. Sometimes technology was introduced before the underlying business process was mature enough, effectively turning an expensive technology pilot into a process-diagnosis exercise.

In many of these cases, the technology itself had worked. The project stalled somewhere else, whether because of ownership, internal alignment, integration or simply because nobody had agreed beforehand what success should look like.

And this wasn’t limited to companies at the beginning of their technology journey. Some of the companies we spoke with already had substantial internal data, analytics and machine-learning capabilities.

A company can have excellent data scientists, sophisticated systems and years of proprietary data and still struggle with a much more basic question: with so many possible applications of AI, where should we focus first?

The opposite is also true. Companies don’t necessarily need perfect data or a large AI team before they begin. They need to understand the business problem well enough to work out what data and capabilities will actually be required. Being technologically advanced and being ready to put AI to work aren’t necessarily the same thing.

Over the Fence

The best solution may not exist inside the company.

AI is developing too quickly for even large technology teams to follow every new model, startup and application. In many cases, somebody outside the company may already have spent several years solving exactly the problem you have just identified.

This is why I think AI is particularly well suited to open innovation. Internal technology teams remain essential, but expecting them to build everything themselves makes less and less sense when the range of external solutions is expanding so quickly.

At the same time, we frequently heard some version of: “Send me the list of startups.”

The temptation is understandable, but a long list of AI startups isn’t much use if you don’t know what you want them to solve. Without a clearly defined problem, it can quickly become a technology shopping exercise, where an impressive solution gets matched to a problem because it happens to be available.

Before looking outside, the company needs to be able to explain what it wants to improve in terms that someone outside the organization can understand. How does the process work today? What isn’t working well enough? What would a materially better result look like? Once those questions have answers, scouting becomes much more useful.

Sometimes it will lead to a startup. Sometimes the answer may already exist with an established provider or inside the company itself. And sometimes, after looking at the problem properly, AI simply won’t be the right answer for now.

That is the thinking we are now putting into practice. We start by identifying and prioritizing real business challenges, turn the most promising into something measurable, and only then look globally for solutions that could fit. The end point is a pilot designed with clear technical, operational and business criteria, including the possibility that the right decision is not to proceed.

For our first AI Readiness Program, we are starting with Brazil’s grain value chain, with my old haunt CME Group as Founding Partner of the program.

Grains are a natural place to start. The value chain stretches from inputs and production through origination, logistics, finance, risk management and trading, creating plenty of problems worth solving and enormous amounts of data to work with.

It is also where much of the AgTech ecosystem has historically concentrated its attention, giving us a deeper pool of existing solutions and startups to explore rather than assuming everything needs to be built from scratch.

Over the coming months, we will put the approach into practice with a small group of companies from across the grain value chain. The aim isn’t to apply AI everywhere. It is to get better at identifying where it can make a meaningful difference today, while keeping an eye on what is coming next.

At the speed AI is developing, none of us knows exactly what will be possible a year from now. Companies don’t need to predict every application. They need to understand their business well enough to know where to start, be willing to look beyond their own walls for answers, and remain open to changing course as new possibilities emerge.

If you’re interested in learning more about the AI Readiness Program or participating in the first program focused on Brazil’s grain value chain, please get in touch.

Thanks for reading.
KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with more than 30 years’ experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in AgriFood and Climate Tech startups in Latin America.

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In Brazil AgTech news this week, Embrapa launches two disease-resistant cotton varieties, Tarken introduces a conversational AI assistant for agricultural credit, biological inputs reach 46.2 million treated hectares, JBS opens its protein-development platform to other food companies, and Mignow takes its agricultural enterprise automation technology to the US.

In Climate Tech, wind power supplies almost all the electricity used by seven ADM soybean-crushing operations, Amanco signs its largest Brazilian irrigation contract, and the government proposes a record US$10.9 billion budget for its Climate Fund in 2027.

In Funding & M&A, Mombak launches an Amazon reforestation fund that could mobilize US$200 million, Minerva Foods acquires a stake in grain marketplace Grão Direto, and Coasul moves to incorporate Codepa in a major Paraná cooperative consolidation.

And in Macro & Markets, Nutrien exits agricultural retail in São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul, a temporary US beef quota creates a new export opening for Brazil, and Uruguay offers Brazil access to its unused Chinese beef quota.

AgTech

• Embrapa Launches Disease-Resistant Cotton Varieties

• Tarken Brings Conversational AI to Agricultural Credit

• Biological Inputs Reach 46.2 Million Treated Hectares

• JBS Opens Protein-Development Platform to Food Companies

• Mignow Takes Agricultural Enterprise Automation to the US

Climate Tech

• Wind Power Cuts ADM’s Soy-Crushing Emissions

• Amanco Signs Its Largest Brazilian Irrigation Contract

• Brazil Proposes US$10.9 Billion for its Climate Fund

Funding & M&A

• Mombak Launches US$200 Million Amazon Reforestation Fund

• Minerva Foods Acquires Stake in Grão Direto

• Coasul and Codepa Plan Paraná Cooperative Consolidation

Macro & Markets

• Nutrien Exits Agricultural Retail in Two Brazilian States

• US Beef Quota Creates Export Opening for Brazil

• Uruguay Offers Brazil Its Unused Chinese Beef Quota

AgTech

Embrapa Launches Disease-Resistant Cotton Varieties — Embrapa and Lyntera have launched two transgenic cotton varieties combining high yields with resistance to nematodes, ramularia and other major diseases. BRS 510 B2RF and BRS 810 B3RF can produce approximately 7.3–7.6 tonnes per hectare in first-season planting and could reduce crop losses and fungicide use in Brazil’s main cotton regions. Source: Embrapa

Tarken Brings Conversational AI to Agricultural Credit — Tarken has launched Estrategista, an AI assistant that lets agribusinesses query internal credit and commercial data using natural language. The company says its platform supports US$2–4 billion in monthly credit approvals across more than 1,000 businesses, giving the new tool a potentially large role in agricultural lending decisions. Source: AgFeed

Biological Inputs Reach 46.2 Million Treated Hectares — Brazilian farmland treated with biological products increased 18.3% to 46.2 million hectares during the first half of 2026, according to CropLife Brasil. Sales rose 9.6% to US$364 million, with particularly strong growth in bionematicides and inoculants. The figures suggest that biologicals are moving beyond product development towards broad commercial adoption. Source: AgFeed

JBS Opens Protein-Development Platform to Food Companies — JBS has created Genu-in Solutions, a white-label platform offering product formulation, testing, regulatory support and manufacturing to companies developing high-protein foods. The business will use collagen, gelatin and other animal-derived ingredients to help outside brands create higher-value products, starting with a snack containing 44% protein. Source: The AgriBiz

Mignow Takes Agricultural Enterprise Automation to the US — Brazilian technology company Mignow is targeting the US agricultural market after using AI to automate SAP modernization for companies including Amaggi, SLC, Coopercitrus and Citrosuco. In one Brazilian cooperative deployment, the company says it cut invoice-processing time from more than five minutes to approximately 20 seconds. Source: AgFeed

Climate Tech

Wind Power Cuts ADM’s Soy-Crushing Emissions — ADM’s share of the Babilônia Sul wind complex now supplies almost all the electricity used by seven soybean-crushing operations across Brazil. The company estimates that the arrangement avoids 19,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually and reduces processing costs by approximately US$1.20 per tonne, connecting lower emissions with stronger crushing margins. Source: AgFeed

Amanco Signs Its Largest Brazilian Irrigation Contract — Amanco Wavin will provide 57 kilometres of piping for 28 center-pivot irrigation systems at Fazenda Tronco in Minas Gerais under a contract worth more than US$2 million. The farm expects irrigation to increase soybean yields by approximately 20%, although 19 of the planned pivots still require environmental approval. Source: AgFeed

Brazil Proposes US$10.9 Billion for Fundo Clima — Brazil’s proposed 2027 budget would allocate a record US$10.9 billion to the country's Climate Fund, 28% more than this year. The fund is becoming an important source of concessional capital for reforestation, corn ethanol, biomethane and other low-carbon projects, although actual lending has consistently fallen short of the amounts authorized. Source: Capital Reset

Funding & M&A

Mombak Launches US$200 Million Amazon Reforestation Fund — Mombak has completed the first close of Amazon Reforestation Fund II, which aims to raise US$160 million in equity and has secured approval for a US$40 million credit line from the country's Climate Fund. The reforestation fund will restore degraded pasture with native Amazon forest and generate carbon-removal credits, although the amount raised at first close was not disclosed. Source: Capital Reset

Minerva Foods Acquires Stake in Grão Direto — Minerva Foods has acquired an existing investor’s stake in digital grain marketplace Grão Direto, becoming the first livestock company in its shareholder group. The investment could connect digital grain trading with feed procurement, livestock production and commodity intelligence. It was a secondary transaction, meaning Grão Direto received no new capital, and the value was not disclosed. Source: AgFeed

Coasul and Codepa Plan Paraná Cooperative Consolidation — Coasul plans to incorporate Codepa, creating a cooperative group with combined annual revenue of approximately US$1.3 billion and 19,000 members. The transaction would bring together grain storage, agricultural inputs, credit, poultry processing and technical services, but still requires approval from members and Brazil’s competition authority. Source: AgFeed

Macro & Markets

Nutrien Exits Agricultural Retail in Two Brazilian States — Nutrien will end direct agricultural-input retail and distribution in São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul while retaining operations in Goiás, Minas Gerais and Tocantins. The withdrawal reflects continuing pressure on margins and credit across Brazil’s input-distribution sector and could create opportunities for regional dealers and cooperatives. Source: The AgriBiz

US Beef Quota Creates Export Opening for Brazil — A temporary 300,000-tonne expansion of the US low-tariff quota for lean beef could help Brazil more than triple shipments between September and November, according to Agrifatto. Brazil has approximately 50 approved processing plants and is well positioned to supply a market facing its smallest cattle herd in 75 years. Source: The AgriBiz

Uruguay Offers Brazil Its Unused Chinese Beef Quota — Uruguay has offered Brazil access to the unused portion of its Chinese beef-import quota after Brazilian exporters exhausted their own 2026 allocation. The arrangement could reopen space in Brazil’s largest beef market, where above-quota shipments face tariffs totalling 67%, but it still requires approval and implementation by China. Source: CNN Brasil

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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In Brazil AgTech news this week, Valeouro and Symbiomics join forces to develop gene-edited bioinputs, John Deere prepares to launch a natural-language AI agent for its connected machinery, Solinftec reshapes its leadership around an AI-first strategy, and Ecorobotix introduces plant-by-plant precision spraying in Brazil.

In Climate Tech, Google backs methane reduction and carbon removal across 200,000 hectares of Brazilian rice, corn-ethanol growth could require US$2.9 billion in new eucalyptus plantations, and proposed carbon-registry rules could restrict Brazilian credits’ access to international markets.

In Funding & M&A, Doroth raises US$4.6 million to scale molecular diagnostics, iRancho opens a US$2 million round as it moves toward rural finance, xFarm acquires Sibium to enter Brazil’s sugarcane sector, and NotCo sells its Brazilian operation while pivoting toward AI licensing.

And in Macro & Markets, Brazil prepares new regulations for bioinputs and on-farm production, a sulfur shortage forces domestic phosphate plants to cut production, and staff shortages halt ten IAC crop-breeding programs.

AgTech

• Valeouro and Symbiomics Partner to Develop Gene-Edited Bioinputs

• John Deere Prepares Agricultural AI Launch for Brazil

• Solinftec Reshapes Leadership Around AI-First Strategy

• Ecorobotix Brings Plant-by-Plant Precision Spraying to Brazil

Climate Tech

• Google Backs Methane Reduction Across 200,000 Hectares of Brazilian Rice

• Corn-Ethanol Expansion Could Require US$2.9 Billion in New Eucalyptus

• Carbon Registry Rules Could Block Brazilian Credit Exports

Funding & M&A

• Doroth Raises US$4.6 Million to Take Molecular Diagnostics into the Field

• iRancho Opens US$2 Million Round to Expand into Rural Finance

• xFarm Acquires Sibium and Enters Brazil’s Sugarcane Sector

• NotCo Sells Brazilian Operation and Pivots Toward AI Licensing

Macro & Markets

• Brazil Prepares New Rules for Bioinputs and On-Farm Production

• Sulfur Shortage Forces Brazilian Phosphate Plants to Cut Production

• Staff Shortages Halt Ten IAC Crop-Breeding Programs

AgTech

Valeouro and Symbiomics Partner to Develop Gene-Edited Bioinputs — Valeouro Biotec has partnered with Symbiomics, to develop biological inputs using microorganism discovery, machine learning and genomic editing. Symbiomics will lead the initial research, while Valeouro provides production and commercialization capacity through a new biofactory in Cravinhos, São Paulo, receiving more than US$20 million in investment. The first joint product is expected to be a biofungicide for soy, corn, cotton and sugarcane. Symbiomics is a Yield Lab Latam portfolio company. Source: AgFeed

John Deere Prepares Agricultural AI Launch for Brazil — John Deere is testing an AI agent that will allow farmers to question their operational data using natural language. Integrated with the Operations Center, “JD” can compare fuel consumption, planting quality, spraying capacity and harvest conditions using each farm’s machinery and agronomic history. The company plans to launch the tool in Latin America by the end of 2026 and is approaching 100,000 connected machines in Brazil. Source: Revista Cultivar

Solinftec Reshapes Leadership Around AI-First Strategy — Solinftec is reorganizing its senior leadership as its founders become more directly involved in accelerating an AI-first strategy. The changes reportedly include the departures of global vice-president Denis Arroyo Alves and CTO Henrique Nomura. The company wants to integrate its Alice multi-agent platform more closely with Solix autonomous robots and connected agricultural machinery, an approach it describes as “physical AI.” Solinftec did not comment on the reported personnel changes. Source: AgFeed

Ecorobotix Brings Plant-by-Plant Precision Spraying to Brazil — Swiss AgTech Ecorobotix has appointed Horttak as its first official Brazilian distributor, initially targeting vegetable farms in Minas Gerais and Goiás. Its ARA sprayer combines 3D and RGB cameras with AI to identify individual plants and apply inputs within six-by-six-centimetre zones. Ecorobotix claims the system can reduce crop-protection volumes by as much as 95%. The first Brazilian field demonstrations are planned for the final quarter of 2026. Source: Revista Cultivar

Climate Tech

Google Backs Methane Reduction Across 200,000 Hectares of Brazilian Rice — Google has signed its largest carbon-removal agreement to date with Terradot, covering rice farms in Rio Grande do Sul. Farmers will periodically drain flooded paddies to reduce methane emissions, while crushed volcanic rock will be applied to remove atmospheric carbon permanently. Google will purchase one million tonnes of methane impact by 2030 and another million tonnes of permanent carbon removal by 2040. The model could eventually expand across Brazil’s 1.5 million hectares of rice. Source: CNN Brasil

Corn-Ethanol Expansion Could Require US$2.9 Billion in New Eucalyptus — Brazil’s corn-ethanol capacity is projected to grow from 10.9 billion litres in 2025 to 25.3 billion by 2030, creating a major demand for renewable biomass. In Mato Grosso alone, Itaú BBA estimates that another 218,000 hectares of eucalyptus could be needed. Establishing those forests would require approximately US$1.5 billion under its base assumptions and as much as US$2.9 billion if industrial and forestry efficiency is lower. Source: AgroTimes

Carbon Registry Rules Could Block Brazilian Credit Exports — Brazil’s Finance Ministry is trying to prevent credits registered for international transfer from losing recognition among foreign buyers. Current legislation requires export-bound credits to enter the national emissions-trading registry as CRVEs, potentially breaking their chain of custody with international standards such as Verra, Gold Standard and ART Trees. The government is discussing solutions with certification bodies and the international aviation regulator ICAO as it prepares the implementing rules. Source: Capital Reset

Funding & M&A

Doroth Raises US$4.6 Million to Take Molecular Diagnostics into the Field — Brazilian deeptech Doroth has secured US$4.6 million in a financing package led by biotechnology company Loccus and supported by Finep and Fapesp resources. Doroth’s portable system uses microfluidic chips to identify agricultural pathogens and resistance genes without sending samples to a laboratory. The capital will help build an automated Brazilian factory capable of producing four million chips annually, increasing production from 30 chips per day to approximately ten per minute. Source: AgFeed

iRancho Opens US$2 Million Round to Expand into Rural Finance — Cattle-management AgTech iRancho is seeking US$2 million after returning to breakeven, with the round expected to close in early 2027. The company will use the capital to expand its technology team and develop AI-enabled products. It is also preparing to launch Lisur, a farm financial-management platform covering invoices, cash flow and accounting. Longer term, iRancho intends to use operational and financial data from its customers to assess credit risk and offer financial products. Source: AgFeed

xFarm Acquires Sibium and Enters Brazil’s Sugarcane Sector — European farm-management company xFarm Technologies has acquired Ribeirão Preto-based Sibium Analytics for an undisclosed amount. Sibium provides geospatial intelligence, traceability and ESG-compliance technology used across more than eight million hectares of sugarcane. The transaction gives xFarm an immediate presence in Brazil’s sugar-and-ethanol industry and follows its 2025 acquisition of CheckPlant. Sibium’s customers will also gain access to xFarm’s sensors, weather stations and AI-based decision-support tools. Source: AgFeed

NotCo Sells Brazilian Operation and Pivots Toward AI Licensing — Chilean foodtech NotCo has sold its Brazilian operation to investment group Ferrara for an undisclosed amount, although its brands and approximately 50 local employees will remain in the country. The transaction continues NotCo’s retreat from directly managing consumer-food operations outside Chile. The former unicorn is concentrating instead on licensing Giuseppe, its AI platform for formulating food products, to global manufacturers including Nestlé, Barry Callebaut, PepsiCo, Mars and Mondelēz. Source: AgFeed

Macro & Markets

Brazil Prepares New Rules for Bioinputs and On-Farm Production — Brazil is preparing to publish regulations governing the production, registration and use of bioinputs. The draft establishes traceability and transport requirements for on-farm production while allowing simplified registration for certain products and previously assessed microbial strains. MAPA would lead oversight, although Anvisa and Ibama would retain responsibility for health and environmental risk assessments. Some industry groups fear the rules could make registering biological crop-protection products unnecessarily complex. Source: AgFeed

Sulfur Shortage Forces Brazilian Phosphate Plants to Cut Production — Mosaic has halted or reduced production across several Brazilian operations as geopolitical disruption and shipping constraints restrict the global supply of sulfur, a key raw material for phosphate fertilizers. The measures have affected facilities in Minas Gerais, Goiás, Bahia, Tocantins and Mato Grosso, triggering layoffs and temporary contract suspensions. Prolonged disruption could further reduce domestic phosphate production and increase Brazil’s dependence on imported fertilizers. Source: CNN Brasil

Staff Shortages Halt Ten IAC Crop-Breeding Programs — The Instituto Agronômico de Campinas has discontinued ten crop-breeding programs after retiring and deceased researchers were not replaced. The affected research covers rice, soybeans, cotton, wheat, oats and other crops, while another seven programs are each maintained by only one scientist. The shortage also threatens germplasm collections containing traits that could help Brazilian agriculture respond to drought, heat, pests and diseases. Source: CNN Brasil

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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In Brazil AgTech news this week, Síntese invests US$18 million in next-generation biological inputs, one in six farmers is already using generative AI, Sumitomo makes BioRationals central to its Brazilian growth strategy, and research identifies 22 barriers to digitalization among agricultural cooperatives.

In Climate Tech, Nestlé expands its Brazilian cocoa sourcing and regenerative-farming program, Coamo’s US$340 million corn-ethanol biorefinery nears completion, Yara opens a US$240 million low-carbon fertilizer project, and a US tax credit begins pricing farm-level carbon reductions into ethanol feedstock.

In Funding & M&A, Vale invests in Pátria’s US$400 million reforestation fund to finance agroforestry and carbon projects in the Atlantic Forest, while Fertilizantes Heringer considers restructuring its debts after fertilizer sales fell 62% and total liabilities reached US$163 million.

And in Macro & Markets, the area covered by rural credit falls 26%, Fiagros trade at an average 23% discount as agricultural credit risks rise, and the growing adoption of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs could shift Brazil’s meat industry towards higher-value and nutrient-dense protein.

AgTech

• Síntese Invests US$18m in Next-Generation Biologicals

• One in Six Farmers Already Uses Generative AI

• Sumitomo Makes BioRationals Central to Brazil Growth

• Study Identifies 22 Barriers to Cooperative Digitalization

Climate Tech

• Nestlé Expands Brazilian Cocoa Sourcing and Regenerative Farming

• Coamo’s US$340m Corn-Ethanol Biorefinery Nears Completion

• Yara Opens US$240m Low-Carbon Fertilizer Project

• US Carbon Credit Starts Pricing Farm Practices into Ethanol

Funding & M&A

• Heringer Prepares for Possible Debt Restructuring

• Vale Invests in Pátria’s US$400m Reforestation Fund

Macro & Markets

• Rural Credit-Financed Area Falls 26%

• Fiagros Trade at 23% Discount as Credit Risks Rise

• GLP-1 Adoption Could Reshape Brazil’s Protein Market

AgTech

Síntese Invests US$18m in Next-Generation Biologicals — The Paraná-based company is investing US$12 million in a new research and production facility and has secured another US$6 million from Finep. Síntese has catalogued around 500 microorganisms that live inside plants and is using them to develop enzymes, peptides and other biological products. Its first four products are expected to reach the market in the second half of 2027. Source: AgFeed

One in Six Farmers Already Uses Generative AI — A McKinsey survey of 5,500 farmers in ten countries found that 17% already use generative AI for farm-related tasks, although only 4% pay for it. Adoption is highest in Latin America and North America, but AI has not replaced personal advice: 89% of Latin American respondents still identify agronomists as a trusted source for agricultural decisions. Source: AgFeed

Sumitomo Makes BioRationals Central to Brazil Growth — Sumitomo Chemical plans to double its Brazilian business by 2030, with biologicals, pheromones and plant-growth regulators playing a central role. Products grouped under its BioRationals strategy already account for 18% of sales volume but generate 25% of the company’s results in Brazil, where it reported revenue of approximately US$820 million in 2025. Source: AgFeed

Study Identifies 22 Barriers to Cooperative Digitalization — Research from Fundação Dom Cabral identified 22 obstacles affecting technology adoption among coffee and dairy cooperatives in Minas Gerais. The main difficulties include limited rural connectivity, a lack of digital skills, resistance to new systems and insufficient capital. The findings also suggest that platforms must reflect the unusual structure of cooperatives, where farmers are simultaneously owners, suppliers and customers. Source: Portal do Agronegócio

Climate Tech

Nestlé Expands Brazilian Cocoa Sourcing and Regenerative Farming — Nestlé is buying more Brazilian cocoa as it diversifies a global supply chain disrupted by disease and record prices. The company is working with hundreds of local farms on practices intended to improve productivity, reduce conventional fertilizer use and strengthen resilience. Brazil currently supplies Nestlé’s domestic needs, while the government expects national cocoa production to nearly double over the next five years. Source: CNN Brasil

Coamo’s US$340m Corn-Ethanol Biorefinery Nears Completion — Construction of the cooperative’s Campo Mourão biorefinery is 60% complete, with operations expected to begin in early 2027. The facility will process 1,700 tonnes of corn and produce up to 765,000 litres of ethanol per day, alongside animal feed and corn oil. It will create a new market for around 600,000 tonnes of corn supplied annually by Coamo members. Source: CNN Brasil

Yara Opens US$240m Low-Carbon Fertilizer Project — Yara has opened a carbon-capture system at its ammonia plant in the Netherlands that can prevent up to 800,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions annually. The captured gas will be transported to Norway and stored beneath the seabed. The challenge will be finding buyers willing to recognize the lower emissions, particularly in price-sensitive markets such as Brazil, which imports around 85% of its fertilizer. Source: Exame

US Carbon Credit Starts Pricing Farm Practices into Ethanol — New rules allow farm-level practices such as reduced tillage and cover crops to lower the calculated carbon intensity of corn used for US ethanol. That can increase the value of the 45Z tax credit received by fuel producers, although any benefit reaching farmers will depend on contracts and certification costs. The system offers an interesting comparison with Brazil’s RenovaBio and CBIO market. Source: CNN Brasil

Funding & M&A

Heringer Prepares for Possible Debt Restructuring — Fertilizantes Heringer’s board has authorized management to pursue an extrajudicial or judicial restructuring if negotiations with creditors fail. The company has secured a 60-day suspension of collection actions involving creditors invited to mediation. Heringer reported total liabilities of approximately US$163 million after quarterly fertilizer sales fell 62%, although it has not yet formally entered a recovery process. Source: AgFeed

Vale Invests in Pátria’s US$400m Reforestation Fund — Vale has made an undisclosed investment in Pátria’s Reforest Fund in exchange for access to carbon credits generated by its projects. The fund will acquire or lease degraded Atlantic Forest land and combine native-tree restoration with agroforestry, timber and agricultural production. It has raised US$32 million so far and is targeting annual returns of up to 12% in dollars over 15 years. Source: Capital Reset

Macro & Markets

Rural Credit-Financed Area Falls 26% — The area covered by Brazilian crop and livestock financing fell from 34.2 million to 25.4 million hectares in the year to July, according to Farsul’s analysis of Banco Central data. Lending declined 12% to approximately US$36 billion, while almost a quarter of the national rural-credit portfolio is now delayed, renegotiated or otherwise stressed. Smaller farmers have fewer alternatives as banks tighten their lending criteria. Source: AgFeed

Fiagros Trade at 23% Discount as Credit Risks Rise — A study of 28 credit-focused Fiagros found that their units trade at an average 23% discount to net asset value while offering dividend yields of around 15.6%. As bank lending contracts and agricultural defaults increase, fund managers are demanding more collateral and charging annual rates of 18% to 20%. The funds are becoming an increasingly important—but considerably more expensive—source of agricultural finance. Source: InfoMoney

GLP-1 Adoption Could Reshape Brazil’s Protein Market — Around 6% of Brazilian adults already use GLP-1 weight-loss medicines, according to a McKinsey–Scanntech survey of more than 2,000 consumers. Users eat less but pay greater attention to nutritional content, potentially favouring smaller quantities of higher-value protein. JBS is investing in hydrolysis and biotechnology to develop functional proteins and extract more value from animal by-products as these consumption patterns evolve. Source: CNN Brasil

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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Some of the most valuable agricultural data has never entered a database. It sits inside the farmer’s head.

A farmer can often remember which field had a pest problem three seasons ago, where the soil holds too much water and why he chose one input over another. He knows what worries him before planting, which recommendations he trusts and what would persuade him to change a decision. Satellites, sensors and farm-management systems can capture an increasingly detailed picture of the farm, yet they rarely explain what the farmer is thinking.

This has left a large gap in digital agriculture. Technology can show the farmer a map, send an alert or recommend an action. Once that information reaches him, visibility often ends. The system may never know whether he followed the recommendation, ignored it or spotted something in the field that changed his mind.

AI agents could close that gap by creating a continuous exchange with farmers through a channel they already use. Almost every Brazilian farmer is on WhatsApp. It is free, familiar and useful, whether the farmer runs a few hectares or several hundred thousand.

The significance goes well beyond having another way to send information. AI agents can ask questions, understand the farmer’s response and provide immediate help in return. For the first time, agricultural technology may be able to engage farmers of almost any size, education level or technical ability, at enormous scale and very little cost.

Insider Knowledge

Brazilian agriculture has become increasingly visible from the outside. Satellites can identify changes in vegetation, monitor crop development and detect environmental risks. Machinery can record planting and harvesting operations. Financial platforms can see transactions, while weather stations and sensors provide a constant flow of field data.

The farmer still holds the context that connects much of this information. A satellite may detect that part of a field developed differently. The farmer may know that the planter broke down, rain interrupted the operation or a particular seed variety was used. A system can record that a recommendation was sent. Only the farmer can explain why he decided against it.

This context is difficult to collect through forms and farm-management software. Entering data takes time, and the benefit to the farmer is often unclear. The information may help a bank, insurer, supplier or trading company, but for the farmer its just more work.

AI agents change the exchange. A farmer can send a photograph, voice message, document or simple question. The agent can request more detail, combine the response with other data and offer a useful answer. The farmer receives help with a decision, while the interaction captures what is happening and why.

The technology does not need to read the farmer’s mind. It needs to be useful enough that the farmer keeps sharing what is on it. Each exchange can reveal a problem, intention, decision or outcome that would otherwise remain invisible.

That creates an inside-out view of the farm to complement the outside-in view provided by satellites and sensors. Combining the two could give agribusinesses a much clearer picture of conditions on the ground and the decisions shaping them.

Direct Channel

Distribution has always been one of the hardest parts of building an AgTech company. Brazil’s farmers are spread across a vast territory, and reaching them can require sales teams, resellers, cooperatives, field days and long hours on the road.

Getting the farmer’s attention is only the beginning. A new digital product may require him to download an application, create an account, remember another password, learn a new interface and enter information before receiving much value. Each step gives him another opportunity to abandon the process.

WhatsApp removes much of that friction because the distribution network is already in place. The farmer understands how it works and checks it throughout the day. It crosses differences in age, education, farm size and location more effectively than any agricultural platform has managed.

The government of Rio Grande do Sul recently began allowing farmers to issue animal waybills through WhatsApp. The service became easier to use because it entered an existing behaviour. The farmer did not have to visit another platform or learn a new system to complete an important task.

AI agents can use the same ready-made channel. Farmers can interact through text, photographs, documents, location data or voice messages. Voice helps when someone is walking through a field, driving machinery or prefers speaking to typing, although it is only one part of the opportunity. The bigger change is the ability to maintain an accessible, two-way exchange.

AI provides the intelligence. WhatsApp provides the road into the farm. Together, they could reduce the cost of finding, onboarding and supporting farmers while making advanced digital services accessible to producers who have previously been too expensive for startups to serve.

Value First

WhatsApp already gives farmers access to an enormous amount of information. Agronomists send recommendations, employees report problems and groups circulate weather forecasts, market prices and photographs. The difficulty is turning all that information into a decision.

The difference is similar to the shift from Google search to AI search. Google returns a list of possible sources and leaves the user to investigate. AI can interpret the question, review the available information and provide a direct response.

A farmer rarely needs another generic weather forecast. He needs to know whether he can spray a particular field tomorrow morning. A soybean price chart has limited value on its own. He wants to know whether the current price covers his costs and whether it makes sense to sell.

An AI agent can answer these questions using farm records, weather forecasts, crop information and market data. It can ask follow-up questions when information is missing and bring an agronomist, veterinarian or financial adviser into the conversation when human judgement is needed.

This immediate value gives the farmer a reason to stay engaged. I recently met a Mato Grosso farmer who uses Grão Direto’s Clicou Fechou platform. He told me that he now records transactions on the platform even when the negotiation happened elsewhere because the incentives, including cashback and points, make participation worthwhile.

The farmer is helping Grão Direto create valuable transaction data because he receives something useful in return. AI agents can apply the same principle to a much wider range of farm decisions. The most effective way to collect better data may be to stop asking farmers to fill out forms and start giving them reasons to interact.

Each interaction can create a simple feedback loop. The farmer asks a question, receives an answer, takes an action and reports the outcome. The system gains more context and can provide a better answer the next time. As more farmers participate, the intelligence can improve across crops, regions and production systems.

Trust will determine how far this can go. Farmers need to understand who can access their information and how it will be used. Clear permission and a fair exchange of value will be essential, particularly when conversations begin influencing credit, insurance or commercial decisions.

New Routes

GPS began as a way to determine location. Once location became continuously visible, it enabled businesses and services that would previously have been difficult to imagine. Waze could identify traffic from the movement of drivers. Uber could match passengers with nearby cars, while food-delivery platforms could coordinate restaurants, couriers and customers in real time.

AI agents could have a similar effect on agriculture. WhatsApp supplies the ready-made distribution network, AI provides the decision capability and farmer interaction creates the missing ground truth.

The resulting opportunities extend far beyond agronomic advice. Better visibility into farm decisions and outcomes could improve credit, insurance, traceability, input recommendations, disease surveillance and market access. It could also give startups a viable way to serve smaller farmers without building expensive distribution networks from scratch.

The farmer’s knowledge has always been valuable. What has changed is the ability to engage with it continuously, naturally and at scale. Reaching the farmer may now cost pennies, while understanding what he sees, thinks and decides could be worth far more.

A penny for the farmer’s thoughts may turn out to be one of the best investments AgTech can make.

Thanks for reading.
KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with more than 30 years’ experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in AgriFood and Climate Tech startups in Latin America.

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In Brazil AgTech news this week, AI and satellite imagery cut cotton field inspections by 75%, Caatinga biome fungi show promise for heat-resistant biofungicides, Mantiqueira invests in automation and AI to expand egg production, and Rio Grande do Sul lets farmers issue animal-transit documents through WhatsApp.

In Climate Tech, Mato Grosso’s biomass-policy reversal threatens a R$10 billion forestry expansion, Brazil’s agricultural transition could require US$511 billion, the country prepares to introduce its SAF mandate, and forest-compatible production receives just 0.4% of agricultural credit.

In Funding & M&A, COFCO buys Bunge’s remaining Brazilian sugar mills, Celcoin acquires VERT, Raízen completes its US$1.42 billion Argentine divestment, and 3Corações closes its US$160 million acquisition of Yoki and Kitano.

And in Macro & Markets, an EU embargo disrupts US$1.84 billion in Brazilian animal-product exports, rural-insurance reform heads for presidential sanction, and soaring sulfur costs threaten Brazil’s phosphate-fertilizer supply.

AgTech

• AI Cuts Cotton Inspections by 75%

• Caatinga Biome Fungi Show Biofungicide Potential

• WhatsApp AI Simplifies Animal-Transit Documents

• Mantiqueira Automates Egg Expansion

Climate Tech

• Biomass Reversal Threatens R$10 Billion Forestry Plan

• Brazil’s Agricultural Transition May Cost US$511 Billion

• SAF Mandate Could Initially Cover 12 Airlines

• Forest-Compatible Farming Gets Just 0.4% of Agricultural Credit

Funding & M&A

• COFCO Buys Bunge’s Brazilian Sugar Mills

• Celcoin Acquires VERT and Enters Structured Credit

• Raízen Completes US$1.42 Billion Argentine Exit

• 3Corações Completes US$160 Million Yoki Acquisition

Macro & Markets

• EU Embargo Hits US$1.84 Billion in Brazilian Exports

• Rural-Insurance Reform Heads for Presidential Sanction

• Sulfur Shock Threatens Brazil’s Fertilizer Supply

AgTech

AI cuts cotton field visits by 75% — Picsel and Bureau Veritas have replaced three of four physical field visits with satellite imagery and AI, while retaining one in-person measurement for validation. During its first operating season, the system evaluated 10,267 cotton fields and has now processed more than 800,000 hectares across six Brazilian states. The models, trained on over 12,000 field samples, reportedly achieved an average error below 0.5 plants per metre. Source: Portal do Agronegócio

Caatinga biome fungi show biofungicide potential — Embrapa researchers identified 14 native Trichoderma isolates capable of suppressing five crop pathogens while tolerating the high temperatures of Brazil’s semi-arid region. Some reduced pathogen growth by more than 70%, while others produced over 1.4 billion spores per gram of substrate—an important factor for commercial-scale manufacturing. The findings could support biological products that remain effective under hotter and drier conditions, although field trials are still required. Source: Revista Cultivar

WhatsApp AI simplifies animal-transit documents — Farmers in Rio Grande do Sul can now use GurIA, the state government’s conversational-AI assistant, to issue the mandatory Guia de Trânsito Animal for horses, ponies and donkeys directly through WhatsApp. Producers can also consult, release, cancel and obtain copies of existing permits for other species. The service offers a practical example of AI reducing rural bureaucracy through a platform farmers already use. Source: O Presente Rural

Mantiqueira invests US$113 million in egg expansion — JBS-controlled Mantiqueira plans to increase annual production capacity by 50%, from four billion to six billion eggs, by 2028. The investment includes new and expanded farms, digitalization, AI and automated equipment capable of grading 200,000 eggs per hour. It will also expand cage-free production and an integration program expected to involve approximately 120 small farmers. The company did not disclose how AI will be used. Source: AgroTimes

Climate Tech

Biomass reversal threatens US$2 billion forestry plan — Mato Grosso has suspended an agreement intended to phase out native wood use by corn-ethanol plants by 2035, leaving investors uncertain about future biomass rules. The forestry industry estimates that meeting demand with renewable eucalyptus would require approximately US$2 billion and expand planted area from 165,000 to 400,000 hectares by 2030. The state is considering allowing large consumers to continue sourcing up to 5% of their biomass from native vegetation. Source: Forbes Brasil

Brazil’s agricultural transition may cost US$511 billion — A study by Cebrap and ClimaInfo estimates that transforming Brazil’s food and agricultural system will require cumulative investment of between US$268 billion and US$511 billion by 2050. Priorities include restoring degraded pastures, expanding integrated crop-livestock-forestry systems, green rural credit, agroforestry, traceability and climate-resilient infrastructure. The figures are scenario-based estimates rather than an official government investment requirement. Source: Brasilagro

SAF mandate could initially cover 12 operators — Brazil’s aviation regulator estimates that 12 airlines, cargo carriers and air-taxi operators could fall under the country’s sustainable aviation fuel program in 2027. The proposed threshold covers operators emitting more than 10,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually on domestic flights. ProBioQAV will initially require a 1% emissions reduction, creating demand for SAF made from agricultural residues, ethanol and vegetable oils. The threshold and compliance rules are still being finalized. Source: Capital Reset

Green credit receives just 0.4% of agricultural lending — Only 0.4% of Brazil’s agricultural credit went to socio-environmental Pronaf programs supporting agroecology, bioeconomy and forest production during the 2023/24 season, according to research published in PLOS Climate. The authors argue that Amazonian producers lack adequate access to finance for businesses that depend on maintaining standing forests, leaving potentially viable production systems reliant on philanthropy and international cooperation. Source: Neo Mondo

Funding & M&A

COFCO buys Bunge’s Brazilian sugar mills — COFCO International agreed to acquire the Rio Vermelho and Nova Unialco mills in São Paulo, adding seven million tonnes of annual sugarcane-crushing capacity. The deal will increase COFCO’s Brazilian capacity from 18.5 million to 25.5 million tonnes and marks Bunge’s exit from domestic sugarcane processing. The purchase price was not disclosed, and completion remains subject to regulatory approval. Source: Forbes Brasil

Celcoin acquires VERT and enters structured credit — Financial-infrastructure company Celcoin acquired VERT Capital, expanding into securitization, fiduciary administration and structured-fund management. VERT has approximately US$19 billion under administration and works with instruments including FIAGRO, CRA and rural-credit funds. The combination could strengthen the infrastructure used to originate and distribute agricultural credit outside conventional banks. The purchase price was not disclosed. Source: Startups.com.br

Raízen completes US$1.42 billion Argentine exit — Raízen completed the sale of its Argentine downstream operations to companies controlled by Mercuria Energy. The consideration combines cash with the assumption of local debt and remains subject to customary post-closing adjustments. Proceeds will support Raízen’s effort to reduce leverage and concentrate capital on priority markets, potentially improving its capacity to invest in Brazilian sugar, ethanol and bioenergy operations. Source: NP Agro

3Corações completes US$160 million Yoki acquisition — 3Corações completed its purchase of General Mills’ Brazilian operations, including the Yoki and Kitano brands and factories in Minas Gerais and Mato Grosso. The acquisition takes Brazil’s leading coffee company into categories including grains, flour, popcorn, farofa and seasonings, while expanding its workforce to approximately 12,700 people and its distribution footprint to more than 600,000 retail outlets. Source: Food Forum

Macro & Markets

EU embargo hits US$1.84 billion in Brazilian exports — The European Union suspended imports of Brazilian beef, poultry, eggs and other animal products after deciding that Brazil had not provided sufficient guarantees regarding prohibited antimicrobials. Beef accounted for US$1.05 billion of the affected 2025 trade and poultry for US$763 million. The restriction reflects concerns about national monitoring and certification—not evidence that prohibited residues were found in Brazilian meat. Source: AgroTimes

Rural-insurance reform heads for presidential sanction — Brazil’s Senate approved legislation making premium subsidies mandatory within the annual budget, establishing deadlines for processing and paying claims, and allowing insurance policies to serve as rural-credit guarantees. The bill could also expand private participation in the country’s long-delayed catastrophe fund. However, most of the US$240 million proposed for the program in 2027 remains dependent on fiscal measures before it can be released. Source: CNN Brasil

Sulfur shock threatens Brazil’s fertilizer supply — Sulfur prices climbed from approximately US$80 per tonne in 2024 to a peak of US$1,200 before easing to around US$800. Global exports fell almost 40% during the first half of 2026, increasing costs for phosphate fertilizers such as MAP and DAP. Rabobank expects phosphate affordability to remain under pressure until at least July 2027, potentially encouraging Brazilian farmers to reduce applications and draw down nutrients stored in their soils. Source: Exame

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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In AgTech news this week, satellite analysis identified potential crop-area mismatches involving US$440 million in publicly financed soybean operations. CNA launched a WhatsApp-based AI adviser, EarthOptics surpassed 600,000 hectares of Brazilian soil analysis, and Embrapa advanced a process for producing bioinsecticides at industrial scale.

In Climate Tech, 4Wood Biotech plans to invest US$540 million in a bamboo biorefinery in Maranhão. Biodiesel demand is driving a 74% expansion in canola planting, Brazilian researchers are developing a lower-energy route to ammonia, and Yara and Coopercitrus are targeting lower-carbon coffee and cocoa.

In Funding & M&A, financial pressure is spreading through the agricultural-input sector as Essere Group and Sefert seek judicial protection and Heringer negotiates with creditors. 051 Capital is deploying land-backed credit into distressed farms, Suno raised US$11 million for its listed farmland fund, and Amaggi is seeking US$100 million through a CRA.

In Macro & Markets, Europe’s deforestation rules are testing Brazil’s agricultural data infrastructure. Falling fertilizer demand prompted an US$800 million subsidized-credit response, Luft plans 150 local distribution hubs, and drought threatens grain transportation along the Tapajós.

AgTech

• Satellites Flag US$440 Million in Soy-Credit Mismatches

• CNA Launches WhatsApp AI Adviser

• EarthOptics Maps 600,000 Hectares of Brazilian Soil

• Embrapa Advances Industrial Bioinsecticide Production

Climate Tech

• US$540 Million Bamboo Biorefinery Approved

• Canola Planting Jumps 74% on Biodiesel Demand

• Researchers Advance Lower-Energy Ammonia Production

• Yara and Coopercitrus Target Lower-Carbon Coffee and Cocoa

Funding & M&A

• Fertilizer Companies Face Growing Financial Distress

• 051 Capital Deploys US$50 Million into Distressed Farms

• Suno Raises US$11 Million for Farmland Fund

• Amaggi Seeks US$100 Million Through CRA

Macro & Markets

• EUDR Tests Brazil’s Agricultural Data Infrastructure

• Fertilizer Slump Triggers US$800 Million Credit Response

• Luft Plans 150 Local Hubs for 24-Hour Input Delivery

• Tapajós Bottleneck Threatens Grain Exports

AgTech

Satellites Flag US$440 Million in Soy-Credit Mismatches — Serasa Experian used Sentinel-2 imagery and automated crop identification to compare 42,691 publicly financed soybean operations with what appeared to have been planted. While 82.6% showed broad alignment, 17.4% had differences exceeding 10% of the financed area, representing US$440 million in credit. The findings can direct lenders toward operations requiring further investigation but do not independently prove misuse. Source: Forbes Agro

CNA Launches WhatsApp AI Adviser — Brazil’s Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock has launched JoIA, a free AI assistant offering farmers technical, financial and management guidance through WhatsApp. The tool draws on 17 years of production-cost data from CNA’s Campo Futuro project, allowing users to compare regional performance and evaluate input prices and exchange ratios. Integration with Senar content will also direct farmers toward relevant training materials and courses. Source: CNN Brasil

EarthOptics Maps 600,000 Hectares of Brazilian Soil — The US AgTech has analyzed more than 30,000 samples for approximately 700 Brazilian producers since entering the market in 2023. Its platform combines sensors, AI and metagenomics to detect soil characteristics, nematodes and microbial activity, helping farmers target chemical and biological treatments more precisely. EarthOptics, which uses Campinas as its South American laboratory base, is targeting annual regional growth of at least 50%. Source: AgFeed

Embrapa Advances Industrial Bioinsecticide Production — Embrapa and biological-input company Efense have developed a process for producing fungal bioinsecticides through liquid fermentation. Validated in 1,200-litre industrial bioreactors, the method produced up to 2.8 billion fungal cells per millilitre within four days. New formulations remained viable for up to 90 days under refrigeration and achieved 70%–93% mortality against fall armyworm and whitefly in controlled trials, with effectiveness also demonstrated in soybean fields. Source: Embrapa

Climate Tech

US$540 Million Bamboo Biorefinery Approved — Brazil’s Export Processing Zone Council has authorized 4Wood Biotech to install a biorefinery in Bacabeira, Maranhão. The proposed facility would process bamboo biomass into second-generation ethanol and other bioproducts for export, creating a potentially significant new agricultural supply chain in the Northeast. The approval allows the project to operate inside the export zone but does not confirm that financing, construction or feedstock contracting has been completed. Source: MDIC

Canola Planting Jumps 74% on Biodiesel Demand — Rio Grande do Sul’s canola area reached an estimated 366,000 hectares this season as processors increased demand for alternative biodiesel feedstocks. Canola contains approximately twice as much oil as soybeans and is now trading at a premium to the crop it once trailed. As a winter crop, it could also support future sustainable aviation fuel production without replacing the state’s main summer soybean crop. Source: The AgriBiz

Researchers Advance Lower-Energy Ammonia Production — Brazilian researchers found that controlled ageing can improve the productivity of cobalt-oxide electrocatalysts used to convert nitrate pollution into ammonia. Unlike the conventional Haber-Bosch process, the experimental route operates at ambient temperature and pressure and could use renewable electricity. However, ageing also made the catalyst less selective, producing more unwanted compounds. The research identifies ways to improve future catalyst design but remains far from demonstrating commercial cost or scale. Source: FAPESP

Yara and Coopercitrus Target Lower-Carbon Coffee and Cocoa — Yara Brasil and Coopercitrus signed a non-binding agreement to evaluate projects that reduce emissions across coffee and cocoa production. Studies will examine business opportunities involving lower-carbon fertilizers and other technologies and inputs that combine productivity with a smaller environmental footprint. The cooperative already distributes Yara products classified as having very low carbon intensity, while the fertilizer company has similar partnerships across coffee, cocoa and banana supply chains. Source: CNN Brasil

Funding & M&A

Fertilizer Companies Face Growing Financial Distress — Financial pressure is spreading through Brazil’s agricultural-input sector. Essere Group requested judicial recovery with US$44 million in debt, while Sefert entered recovery owing US$48 million. Fertilizantes Heringer has meanwhile requested a 60-day suspension of creditor claims while it begins mediation. The three developments suggest that high interest rates, tighter farm credit and weak input demand are now affecting manufacturers as well as producers. Sources: AgFeed, Globo Rural and CNN Brasil

051 Capital Deploys US$50 Million into Distressed Farms — The investment manager is providing land-backed loans to indebted grain producers, primarily in Matopiba. Typical transactions range from US$4 million to US$8 million, with two years of principal grace and four years to repay. Borrowers pay CDI plus 8% annually and must pledge farmland worth at least 2.5 times the loan. The terms offer breathing room, but only to producers with substantial assets and viable cash flow. Source: The AgriBiz

Suno Raises US$11 Million for Farmland Fund — Suno’s listed SNFZ11 fund increased its equity by 40% after completing a follow-on offering largely supported by one institutional investor. Retail investors contributed only US$160,000, illustrating the difficult fundraising environment for publicly traded farmland vehicles. The proceeds will finance three Mato Grosso farms with 2,200 agricultural hectares, expanding the portfolio to six properties covering 3,800 hectares. Source: The AgriBiz

Amaggi Seeks US$100 Million Through CRA — The agricultural group launched a seven-year agribusiness receivables offering restricted to professional investors. One US$60 million tranche will pay 105% of Brazil’s CDI benchmark rate, while the remaining US$40 million will offer a fixed annual return of 15.10%. The documentation does not clearly specify how the proceeds will be used, although Amaggi recently approved the early redemption of a similarly sized CRA issued in 2024. Source: The AgriBiz

Macro & Markets

EUDR Tests Brazil’s Agricultural Data Infrastructure — From December 30, large and medium companies exporting soy, beef, coffee and other covered products to Europe must provide geolocation and evidence that production did not involve deforestation after 2020. The rules affect Brazilian agricultural exports worth approximately US$25 billion annually. Compliance will require interoperable data, traceability and segregated supply chains, with fragmented sectors and smaller producers facing the greatest difficulty. Sources: UOL Economia and European Commission

Fertilizer Slump Triggers US$800 Million Credit Response — Brazilian fertilizer deliveries could fall from 49 million tonnes in 2025 to between 42 million and 45 million this year as restricted credit and weak margins delay purchases and reduce application. The government has meanwhile allocated US$800 million in subsidized BNDES financing for fertilizer companies, primarily for working capital. Reduced phosphorus use could cut soybean productivity by 5%–7%, particularly on newer agricultural land. Sources: AgFeed and The AgriBiz

Luft Plans 150 Local Input Hubs — Luft Logistics is testing an e-commerce-inspired distribution model that places smaller warehouses closer to farms. Its first mini-hub is operating in Uruçuí, Piauí, with a second under discussion in Jataí, Goiás, and the company could eventually create 100–150 locations. Luft already handles approximately 350,000 agricultural deliveries annually and estimates that its operations touch 30%–40% of Brazil’s fertilizer, crop-protection and foliar-input flows. Source: AgFeed

Tapajós Bottleneck Threatens Grain Exports — Drought and unresolved dredging disputes could disrupt between five million and 5.5 million tonnes of soybeans and corn moving from Mato Grosso through the Arco Norte. Industry groups estimate that redirecting cargo to alternative routes could add US$100 million–US$160 million in logistics costs. The federal government suspended planned maintenance dredging pending environmental licensing and consultation with Indigenous and traditional communities, while arguing that road transport can provide contingency capacity. Source: CNN Brasil

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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Unwanted Fruit

One of the most promising answers to aviation’s carbon problem may begin with a fruit that many Brazilian farmers have spent years trying to get rid of.

Macaúba is a native palm found across large parts of Brazil. It is thorny, its fruit falls onto pastures, and on many farms it was something to remove, work around or simply ignore. Now it is attracting billions of dollars.

Acelen Renováveis, backed by Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Capital, is trying to turn macaúba into the principal feedstock for a new generation of sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF.

The company plans to build a chain stretching from degraded pasture in Minas Gerais and Bahia to a biorefinery beside the Mataripe refinery. The scale alone makes it an ambitious bet, with much depending on whether a largely wild native plant can become a reliable commercial crop fast enough to supply an industry that barely exists today.

Aviation is one of the hardest sectors to decarbonize for a simple reason: aircraft need enormous amounts of energy without enormous amounts of weight. Batteries may work for cars and perhaps short regional flights, but they remain impractical for most long-distance aviation. Liquid fuel is difficult to replace at 35,000 feet.

That leaves SAF as one of the few near-term alternatives capable of working in existing aircraft and fuel infrastructure. Governments are now creating demand through regulation. Brazil’s recently regulated ProBioQAV program requires domestic airlines to begin reducing emissions through SAF in 2027, starting at 1% and rising progressively to 10% from 2037.

Mandates, however, can create a market without creating an economical product. SAF remains at least three times more expensive than conventional jet fuel. The International Energy Agency expects global consumption to increase from around one billion litres in 2024 to nine billion litres by 2030, yet even then it would meet only about 2% of aviation fuel demand.

Much of the attention naturally falls on building refineries, although the availability and cost of feedstock may prove every bit as important. Most SAF produced today relies on used cooking oil, animal fats or vegetable oils. These sources can get the market moving, but supplies are limited and many already have competing uses.

Reaching beyond mandates and premium buyers will require crops that produce more oil per hectare, reducing both land requirements and transport costs.

Smart Seed

Acelen estimates that the palm can produce seven to ten times more oil per hectare than soybeans. It is native to Brazil, adapted to tropical and semi-arid conditions, and the project is designed around degraded pasture rather than replacing food crops or native vegetation. Researchers are also examining integration with livestock and higher-value uses for other parts of the fruit.

On paper, it is close to the perfect biofuel crop. The slight inconvenience is that it is not yet really a crop.

Brazil’s success with soybeans, sugarcane and eucalyptus reflects decades of genetic improvement, agronomic research, mechanization, infrastructure and farmer experience. Macaúba is only beginning that process.

Its seeds germinate poorly in nature, and individual palms vary considerably in productivity and oil content. Harvesting has also yet to be proven economically across large commercial areas. A plant that survives in the wild is not automatically one that performs predictably in a farm budget.

To accelerate the work, Acelen created the Agripark research centre in Montes Claros, Minas Gerais, together with Embrapa, universities and other research institutions.

AI-assisted research developed with the State University of Montes Claros has reportedly helped lift germination above 80%, compared with only 3% to 5% in nature.

Automated seed-processing systems can handle up to 1.7 million seeds a month, while the centre is designed to produce 10.5 million seedlings a year. Researchers are also selecting higher-performing genetic material, testing planting arrangements and developing cloning techniques.

AI’s role here is fairly unglamorous, focused on identifying promising plants, improving germination protocols and learning from field data across different soils and climates.

Yet this could be its most useful contribution to SAF, helping reduce the biological variation that makes a wild plant difficult to use as an industrial input. Even with faster analysis, however, the palms still need years to mature, and results from the nursery must be repeated through drought, pests and variable farm management.

Long Haul

Acelen plans to invest around US$3 billion in the integrated project, including approximately US$1.5 billion in a biorefinery in São Francisco do Conde, Bahia. Scheduled to begin operating in 2029, the facility will have capacity to produce one billion litres of SAF and renewable diesel annually.

The industrial timetable is running ahead of the agricultural one. Macaúba will not be available at sufficient scale when the refinery opens, so Acelen has secured used cooking oil from Trafigura and certified soybean oil from Bunge as transitional feedstocks.

These contracts allow the refinery and orchards to develop on different timetables, while also showing how much easier it is to schedule an industrial project than an agricultural one. Construction can follow milestones; a new crop must be tested across soils, seasons and farming systems.

Acelen ultimately expects to develop 144,000 hectares of macaúba across several production hubs in Bahia and northern Minas Gerais. So far, it has acquired roughly 3,000 hectares. Around 20% of production is expected to come through partnerships with small and medium-sized growers, using a model similar to the forestry industry.

Farmers could gain a new source of income from degraded or underused pasture, potentially alongside cattle. Acelen has discussed supplying seedlings, technical assistance and guaranteed purchasing to participating families, but adoption will depend on the terms behind that support.

Who finances establishment before the palms produce? Who carries the risk if yields fall short? How will prices be calculated? Can harvesting and local crushing be done economically? Will carbon income reach the landowner? The answers will shape the business model and determine how much of the early risk sits with growers.

The project has advantages that most new crops lack: a deep-pocketed sponsor, a biorefinery under development, transitional feedstock and Brazil’s new SAF mandate. Even so, the gap between a few thousand acquired hectares and 144,000 productive hectares is enormous.

Few countries are better placed to try. Brazil already knows how to build large biofuel industries, adapt crops to tropical conditions and process agricultural commodities at scale. A successful macaúba chain would create value in genetics, production systems, machinery, carbon measurement and refining, with far more of it remaining in Brazil.

Acelen has already attracted the capital, research partners and buyers needed to get started. We will only know whether macaúba works as a commercial crop after several seasons of consistent yields across much larger areas. Farmers will also need to make money after covering planting, early maintenance, harvesting and transport costs.

In the end, the refinery can make the fuel, but the farmer will decide if it flies.

Thanks for reading.
KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with more than 30 years’ experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in AgriFood and Climate Tech startups in Latin America.

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In AgTech news this week, Herdian is using computer vision to prevent newborn piglet deaths, while Brazil’s biodefensives market has reached $1.1 billion. Embrapa has developed a method for predicting technology adoption, and AgRisk has spun out of Nagro to meet demand for agricultural credit intelligence.

Turning to Climate Tech, ZEG is testing whether carbon revenue can compete with soybean expansion in the Amazon. Cattle traceability is extending to indirect suppliers, a strong El Niño is reshaping agricultural risk, and ANAC is preparing detailed SAF compliance rules.

In Funding & M&A, JBS has offered $1.2 billion for the remaining shares in Pilgrim’s Pride, while Agroterenas has secured $32 million to convert degraded pasture into sugarcane without clearing new land.

Across Macro & Markets, Brazil has opened its first large-scale sorghum trade route to China, while Chinese crop-input producer Fuhua is expanding its presence in the country. Argentine corn is challenging Brazilian exports, and seven cooperatives have begun operating a major soybean-processing plant.

AgTech

• Herdian Uses AI to Prevent Piglet Deaths

• Biodefensives Market Reaches $1.1 Billion

• Embrapa Develops Technology-Adoption Method

• AgRisk Spins Out of Nagro

Climate Tech

• Carbon Project Competes with Soy Expansion

• Amazon Cattle Traceability Expands to Indirect Suppliers

• Strong El Niño Reprices Agricultural Risk

• ANAC Prepares SAF Compliance Rules

Funding & M&A

• JBS Offers $1.2 Billion for Remaining Pilgrim’s Pride Stake

• Agroterenas Raises $32 Million for Pasture Conversion

Macro & Markets

• Brazil Opens Sorghum Trade Route to China

• Fuhua Expands in Brazil’s Crop-Input Market

• Argentine Corn Challenges Brazilian Exports

• Cooperatives Begin Operating Soybean Crusher

AgTech

Herdian Uses AI to Prevent Piglet Deaths – Herdian has developed a computer-vision system that monitors farrowing pens and alerts farm staff when newborn piglets are at risk of being crushed by the sow. The Brazilian startup says its technology can reduce mortality while providing producers with data on births, animal behavior and operational performance. The system addresses a costly livestock-management problem using existing camera infrastructure rather than wearable devices. Source: Globo Rural

Biodefensives Market Reaches $1.1 Billion – Brazil’s biodefensives market generated approximately $1.1 billion in the 2025/26 season, as the area treated with biological products increased by 35%. Adoption is expanding beyond soybeans into crops including sugarcane, corn, cotton and coffee, reflecting stronger demand for pest-management tools that can complement chemical inputs. The growth reinforces Brazil’s position as one of the world’s most dynamic markets for agricultural biologicals. Source: AgFeed

Embrapa Develops Technology-Adoption Method – Embrapa and Unicamp researchers have developed a methodology for assessing whether digital agricultural technologies are likely to succeed in specific farming environments. The model examines infrastructure, farm characteristics, users’ capabilities, economics and environmental conditions before a technology is deployed. It could help developers and investors identify adoption barriers earlier, reducing the risk of building products that perform technically but fail to gain traction with farmers. Source: Embrapa

AgRisk Spins Out of Nagro – Brazilian AgFintech, Nagro, has separated its agricultural credit-risk technology into an independent B2B company called AgRisk. Its AgFlow platform has assessed approximately $2 billion in credit this year and serves 1,600 clients, combining financial analysis, collateral monitoring and farm data. The spinout reflects growing demand for specialist risk intelligence as rural credit becomes tighter, while AgRisk is also evaluating the creation of a Fiagro to provide additional funding through its platform. Source: AgFeed

Climate Tech

Carbon Project Competes with Soy Expansion – ZEG has structured a 40-year carbon project protecting almost 6,000 hectares in Roraima that could legally be cleared for soybean production. The landowner will receive 60% of the project’s revenue, although estimated carbon returns remain around 20% below the potential income from soybeans. The project provides a real-world test of whether higher-integrity carbon credits can make standing forest financially competitive with agricultural expansion. Source: Bloomberg Línea

Amazon Cattle Traceability Expands to Indirect Suppliers – From 2027, meatpackers operating in Brazil’s Amazon will begin monitoring cattle acquired through indirect suppliers under agreements with the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office. The change aims to address a major gap in livestock traceability, as animals can move between multiple farms before reaching a slaughterhouse. Bringing breeding and intermediary properties into the system could improve visibility over deforestation risks across the cattle supply chain. Source: Globo Rural

Strong El Niño Reprices Agricultural Risk – Agricultural markets are beginning to incorporate the growing probability of an exceptionally strong El Niño, with Brazilian coffee, wheat and soybean production facing different combinations of excessive rainfall, heat and drought. The elevated risk makes climate forecasting, insurance and farm-level adaptation increasingly important ahead of the next crop cycle, particularly as extreme conditions could affect production across several important agricultural regions simultaneously. Source: InfoMoney

ANAC Prepares SAF Compliance Rules – Brazil’s civil aviation regulator plans to open a 30-day public consultation in September on detailed rules for the country’s sustainable aviation fuel mandate. The proposal will cover emissions accounting, verification and penalties, with final regulations expected in October before the mandate begins in 2027. The framework will influence demand for agricultural feedstocks and certification systems, while providing greater clarity for investment in Brazilian SAF production. Source: Capital Reset

Funding & M&A

JBS Offers $1.2 Billion for Remaining Pilgrim’s Pride Stake – JBS has proposed acquiring the shares it does not already own in US poultry producer Pilgrim’s Pride through an all-stock transaction. The offer would exchange 2.086 JBS shares for each outstanding Pilgrim’s Pride share, giving the proposal an estimated value of $1.2 billion. Full ownership would simplify JBS’s international structure and allow Pilgrim’s Pride to delist from Nasdaq, although the non-binding offer still requires approval from independent directors and minority shareholders. Source: Bloomberg Línea

Agroterenas Raises $32 Million for Pasture Conversion – Agroterenas has raised $32 million through agribusiness receivables certificates to convert degraded pasture into sugarcane fields without clearing native vegetation. The financing will support the company’s expansion in Mato Grosso do Sul, where it plans to increase production while improving land productivity. The transaction illustrates how capital-market instruments can fund agricultural growth through the recovery of previously cleared land rather than further expansion into natural ecosystems. Source: CNN Brasil

Macro & Markets

Brazil Opens Sorghum Trade Route to China – COFCO has dispatched approximately 69,000 tonnes of Brazilian sorghum from Santos to Guangzhou, marking the country’s first large-scale shipment to China following an earlier container-based trial. Commercial access to the world’s largest sorghum importer creates a new export outlet for Brazilian farmers and could strengthen the crop’s role as a lower-risk second-season alternative to corn. Source: COFCO

Fuhua Expands in Brazil’s Crop-Input Market – Chinese crop-input producer Fuhua is expanding its Brazilian presence as it seeks greater recognition among farmers and a larger share of the market. The company is investing in local distribution, regulatory registrations and closer relationships with agricultural retailers. Its strategy reflects a broader shift by Chinese companies from supplying ingredients behind the scenes to establishing their own brands and competing directly for value within Brazil’s agricultural-input market. Source: AgFeed

Argentine Corn Challenges Brazilian Exports – Argentina could export 45 million tonnes of corn and overtake Brazil, intensifying competition as Brazilian shipments to Iran—its largest market in 2025—fell 43% between January and July. Brazil needs to export approximately 40 million tonnes to balance domestic supply, meaning weaker overseas demand could pressure producer margins despite growing consumption from the country’s corn-ethanol industry. Source: Exame

Cooperatives Begin Operating Soybean Crusher – Seven Paraná cooperatives have begun operating a soybean-processing plant acquired from Louis Dreyfus Company in Ponta Grossa. The facility can crush 3,400 tonnes per day and will produce soybean meal, oil and biodiesel feedstock. The jointly owned operation expands farmers’ participation in downstream processing, allowing the cooperatives to capture more value from their soybean production while strengthening their position in animal feed, biofuels and export markets. Source: CNN Brasil

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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Anyone walking through Agrishow in Ribeirão Preto this year would have noticed some unfamiliar names among the usual machinery giants.

More than 50 Chinese companies occupied a dedicated pavilion, selling everything from tractors and components to irrigation systems and drones. That did not include larger manufacturers such as XCMG and LiuGong, which had their own stands and more established operations in Brazil.

The Chinese presence was still small compared with the sprawling displays of John Deere, Case IH and AGCO. But it was difficult to miss the direction of travel. China is no longer content to wait at the port for Brazilian soybeans to arrive. Its companies are beginning to cross the farm gate.

This week, DBN Biotech revealed plans to enter the Brazilian soybean market, expand into corn and cotton, establish a research centre in Campinas and capture 30% of the country’s agricultural biotechnology market by 2038.

Bound by Soy

For most of the past 25 years, the agricultural relationship between Brazil and China has been fairly straightforward. Brazil produced, China purchased and trade exploded.

At a recent Brazil Climate Solutions event in São Paulo, Marcos Jank of Insper Agro Global showed that Brazilian agricultural exports to China grew from just US$919 million in 2000 to US$55.3 billion in 2025.

Nothing drove that growth more than soy. Exports from the Brazilian soy complex to China increased from US$371 million to US$34.6 billion over the same period. China now buys 65% of Brazil’s soy exports, while Brazil supplies almost 73% of China’s imported soy.

Brazil and China have become the agricultural equivalent of an old married couple. They may occasionally argue, but separating would be expensive for both sides.

China needs Brazil because it cannot produce enough food and animal feed at home. Its agricultural trade deficit reached US$133 billion in 2025, the largest in the world. Brazil had the largest surplus, at US$136 billion. One country’s excess production almost mirrors the other’s shortfall.

China cannot simply grow its way out of the problem. It has limited fertile land and serious water constraints. Its farms are generally small, its rural population is ageing and competition between crops is intense.

While China has expanded its corn area, soybean planting has remained at around nine million hectares for much of the past two decades. Chinese soybean yields are approximately 30 bags per hectare, compared with around 60 in Brazil.

Urbanisation has added to the pressure. China’s urban population grew from around 160 million people in 1975 to more than 950 million in 2025. As people moved to cities and incomes rose, diets changed. More meat, dairy and processed food meant greater demand for soymeal and other animal feeds.

Brazil was ready to supply them. China and Hong Kong now account for one-third of Brazilian agricultural exports, twice the share of the European Union.

For Brazil, feeding the dragon has been very good business.

Beyond the Bean

Trade rarely remains a one-way street forever. China first entered the Brazilian agricultural economy as a buyer. It then became an important supplier of fertilisers, crop-protection products, components and lower-cost equipment. Its companies are now establishing factories, distribution networks, finance operations and research centres.

That shift was on full display at Agrishow this year. Chinese state-controlled equipment manufacturer XCMG is preparing to sell tractors adapted to Brazilian conditions. The company already has a factory in Minas Gerais, a dealer network and even its own bank to finance equipment purchases.

Zoomlion presented tractors ranging from 75 to 350 horsepower, including a hybrid model, and plans to assemble agricultural machinery in Brazil. LiuGong launched four new machines and has built a network of 12 distributors and 48 service points.

Price helps Chinese manufacturers get through the door, but price alone will not keep them there. Brazilian farms are demanding environments. Machines often operate around the clock during narrow planting and harvesting windows, hundreds of kilometres from the nearest major city.

Farmers need spare parts, mechanics, finance and a reasonable resale value. A cheap tractor becomes expensive very quickly if it is sitting idle during harvest.

Chinese companies appear to understand this. The more serious players are shifting from simply exporting equipment to building the local infrastructure needed to support it. They are also adapting products to Brazilian crops, farm sizes, fuels and operating conditions.

Metal to Molecule

The bigger prize, however, may lie inside the seed. DBN has already received regulatory approval in Brazil for soybean technology offering insect resistance and tolerance to widely used herbicides.

Farmers buy tractors once every several years. A successful biotechnology trait can generate royalties across millions of hectares, season after season.

Until now, most of China’s money entered the chain after the soybean left the farm. DBN wants to start earning before the seed enters the ground.

This isn’t China’s first move into agricultural genetics. Syngenta has been Chinese-owned since its acquisition by ChemChina. CITIC also entered the Brazilian seed industry through the acquisition of Dow’s corn-seed business, which became part of LongPing High-Tech.

What makes this latest move different is that it brings home-grown Chinese biotechnology into one of the world’s largest markets for genetically modified crops. DBN’s proposed Campinas research centre also suggests that Brazil will be more than a sales territory. It will be a base for adapting and developing technology for tropical agriculture.

For Brazilian farmers, greater competition could be welcome. The biotechnology market is concentrated, and more suppliers could mean better products, more choice and lower costs.

Value Subtracted

Brazil’s problem is not that it exports commodities. It is that it captures too little of the value created around them.

In another of Jank’s charts, Brazil had almost caught the United States in agricultural commodity exports. When it came to higher-value agricultural specialities, the gap was enormous. The United States exported around US$65 billion. Brazil barely registered.

Brazil has become very good at exporting what grows in the field. It has been much less successful at exporting what comes out of the laboratory.

China has clearly spotted the opportunity to capture more of that value. It may never eliminate its dependence on Brazilian soybeans, but its companies can earn money from the genetics, machinery and technology used to produce them.

Brazil should treat this influx as more than another wave of imports. Chinese companies need access to its farmers, tropical growing conditions, research capabilities and enormous agricultural market. That gives Brazil leverage to attract investment and partnerships that also help build its own technology companies.

Otherwise, it risks remaining the world’s most sophisticated supplier of commodities while companies from elsewhere collect the royalties.

For 25 years, Brazil has sold China the harvest. Now China wants to sell Brazil what it needs to produce it.

Thanks for reading.
KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with more than 30 years’ experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in AgriFood and Climate Tech startups in Latin America.

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In Brazil AgTech news this week, Chinese agribusiness giant DBN is targeting 30% of Brazil’s soybean-biotech market, while Cogny has registered the country’s first locally developed metabolite-based biofungicide. Embrapa has identified nitrogen-fixing bacteria with potential use in cotton bioinputs, and a new study estimates AI could add $10 billion to Brazilian agriculture by 2030.

In Climate Tech, Brazil has introduced rules for SAF, carbon capture and low-carbon hydrogen, while the STF has upheld the Soy Moratorium. Amazon deforestation alerts have fallen 37%, international carbon-credit sales are moving closer, and Brazilian agricultural capital is expanding into Bolivia.

In Macro & Markets news, the Senate has approved up to $2 billion in incentives for domestic fertilizer production. Rising judicial-recovery filings and a new rural-debt restructuring program reveal growing financial pressure across the sector, while a $244 billion logistics plan sets out a longer-term route for improving infrastructure.

AgTech

• DBN Targets 30% of Brazil’s Soybean Biotech Market

• Cogny Registers Brazil’s First Metabolite-Based Biofungicide

• AI Could Add $10 Billion to Brazilian Agriculture

• Embrapa Finds Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria in Cotton

• Nestlé, Carrefour and Ourofino Seek AgTech Solutions

Climate Tech

• Brazil Regulates SAF, Carbon Capture and Low-Carbon Hydrogen

• STF Upholds the Soy Moratorium

• Brazilian Agricultural Capital Expands into Bolivia

• Amazon Deforestation Alerts Fall 37%

• Brazil Prepares International Carbon-Credit Sales

Macro & Markets

• Brazil Approves $2 Billion Fertilizer-Incentive Program

• Rural-Debt Restructuring Targets Mounting Credit Stress

• Judicial-Recovery Filings by Farmers Jump 73.5%

• Brazil Launches $244 Billion Logistics Plan

AgTech

DBN Targets 30% of Brazil’s Soybean Biotech Market – Chinese agribusiness group DBN plans to capture 30% of Brazil’s soybean-biotechnology market, challenging Bayer, Corteva, BASF and Syngenta. The Shenzhen-listed company will establish an R&D center in Campinas, beginning with a molecular-biology laboratory for GM crops. Fieldwork on its first herbicide-tolerance and insect-control platforms starts this year, ahead of a planned 2028 commercial launch. Its pipeline also includes traits targeting stink bugs, rust and nematodes. Source: Forbes Agro

Cogny Registers Brazil’s First Metabolite-Based Biofungicide – Cogny has received regulatory approval for Metabolic Protection, the first biofungicide based entirely on metabolites developed in Brazil. Unlike conventional biological products that apply living microorganisms, the technology delivers approximately 40 bioactive molecules directly to the plant. More than 20 act against fungi, while another 17 stimulate the plant’s natural defenses. Developed over five years with Cogny’s R&D arm Orygen, the product will initially target soybean diseases, with potential expansion into cotton and beans. Source: AgFeed

AI Could Add $10 Billion to Brazilian Agriculture – Artificial intelligence could add $10 billion to Brazilian agriculture between 2027 and 2030, according to a study by Reglab commissioned by OpenAI. Around 92% of the projected gains would come through more efficient machinery, equipment and production systems rather than office-based automation. The estimate points toward AI becoming embedded in tractors, sensors and farm operations, although limited rural connectivity and uneven access to modern equipment could slow adoption. Source: Exame Agro

Embrapa Finds Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria in Cotton – Embrapa researchers have identified bacteria capable of converting atmospheric nitrogen into forms cotton plants can absorb. In controlled tests, inoculated plants developed similarly to those receiving recommended nitrogen fertilization. The bacteria were isolated from tree-cotton roots and tested on commercially grown upland cotton, opening a possible route toward bioinputs that reduce fertilizer costs, imports and emissions. The findings remain preliminary, with further strain evaluation and product development required before commercial use. Source: Embrapa

Nestlé, Carrefour and Ourofino Seek AgTech Solutions – Nestlé, Carrefour and Ourofino have presented new challenges for the fourth AptaHub Conecta open-innovation program. Nestlé is seeking continuous coffee-crop monitoring, Carrefour wants intelligent label-verification tools, and Ourofino is looking for technologies to improve pig-production efficiency without ractopamine. Applications remain open until August 31. Previous editions have trained 95 science-based startups and generated 27 commercial connections with participating companies. Source: Globo Rural

Climate Tech

Brazil Regulates SAF, Carbon Capture and Low-Carbon Hydrogen – Brazil has issued long-awaited decrees establishing frameworks for sustainable aviation fuel, carbon capture and storage, and low-carbon hydrogen. The SAF rules create a certification system and allow environmental attributes to be traded separately through book-and-claim, while CCS gains rules covering permits, pipelines and underground monitoring. The hydrogen program provides for $3.5 billion in tax credits. Agricultural residues, ethanol and vegetable oils could become important feedstocks, although further ANP and Anac regulations are still required. Source: Capital Reset

STF Upholds the Soy Moratorium – Brazil’s Supreme Court has ruled that the Soy Moratorium is legal and compatible with the Forest Code, rejecting claims that the agreement constitutes a cartel. The court also ordered the termination of related compensation cases and proceedings before Cade and other authorities. Established in 2006, the private agreement prevents participating traders from purchasing soy grown on Amazon land cleared after July 2008, imposing environmental requirements that extend beyond Brazil’s general land-use rules. Source: CNN Brasil

Brazilian Agricultural Capital Expands into Bolivia – Brazilian soybean and cattle investors are moving into Bolivia, attracted by cheaper land, new transport links and more permissive clearing rules. Much of the expansion is occurring in Chiquitania, a biodiverse dry-forest region connected to the Amazon basin. Bolivia lost around one-sixth of its tree cover between 2001 and 2025 and recorded the world’s second-largest tropical-forest loss last year. The movement raises concerns that agricultural expansion and deforestation pressure could migrate across the border as Brazil tightens domestic enforcement. Source: Bloomberg Línea

Amazon Deforestation Alerts Fall 37% – Deforestation alerts in Brazil’s Amazon covered 2,874 square kilometres between August 2025 and July 2026, down 37% from the previous twelve months. This was the lowest level recorded by the current Deter monitoring system, which began in 2015, and suggests Brazil could approach its lowest official annual deforestation rate since 1988. Deter provides rapid alerts for enforcement, while the higher-resolution Prodes system will produce the definitive annual estimate later this year. Source: Bloomberg Línea

Brazil Prepares International Carbon-Credit Sales – Brazil could begin authorizing advance sales of internationally transferable carbon credits in 2027 or 2028, before its regulated emissions market becomes fully operational in 2031. The Finance Ministry is revising proposed rules after a public consultation received 2,532 submissions, with project developers concerned about missing near-term international demand. Implementation still requires approved methodologies, a national compensation program and a central registry. Earlier authorization could help attract capital to forestry, restoration and agricultural carbon projects seeking access to Article 6 markets. Source: Capital Reset

Macro & Markets

Brazil Approves $2 Billion Fertilizer-Incentive Program – Brazil’s Senate has approved Profert, offering up to $2 billion in federal tax credits over five years for new fertilizer factories and the expansion or modernization of existing plants. The program covers synthetic, mineral and organic fertilizers, as well as remineralizers, bioinputs and biofertilizers. Designed to reduce Brazil’s dependence on imports, which supply roughly 85% of domestic fertilizer demand, the legislation now moves to presidential approval. Source: Senate

Rural-Debt Restructuring Targets Mounting Credit Stress – Brazil has authorized subsidized interest rates for a new rural-debt restructuring program, with ten financial institutions participating and contracts available through November 12. Banco do Brasil estimates that as much as $20 billion of its agricultural loan portfolio could qualify, illustrating the scale of the financial pressure created by high costs, weak margins and successive crop losses. Actual uptake will depend on eligibility reviews, bank execution and budget availability. Source: CNN Brasil

Judicial-Recovery Filings by Farmers Jump 73.5% – Brazilian agricultural producers operating as companies filed 196 judicial-recovery requests during the first quarter of 2026, up 73.5% year on year. Soybean growers accounted for 137 filings and cattle producers for 42. Including individual farmers and companies elsewhere in the agribusiness supply chain, filings reached 474, an increase of 21.9%. Mato Grosso led the country with 135 cases, followed by Goiás with 73. Source: Exame

Brazil Launches $244 Billion Logistics Plan – Brazil’s new National Logistics Plan identifies a potential $244 billion investment portfolio through 2050, spanning 42 logistics corridors across the country. Around $147 billion is expected to come from private capital and $98 billion from public funding. The plan seeks to lower transport costs and reduce the freight system’s reliance on roads by expanding rail and waterway integration. The figures represent potential projects rather than committed investment, with priorities still to be defined through sector-specific plans. Source: Agência iNFRA

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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In Brazil AgTech news this week, Embrapa is bringing biological innovation closer to home with Brazil’s first international depository for patentable microorganisms, while Argentine startup Calice uses virtual trials to accelerate product development. Another Argentine startup, Agrofy, is retreating from Brazil to rethink its model around AI.

In Climate Tech, açaí pits are being transformed into nanofertilizer, while Tello scales organic-coated fertilizers designed to improve nutrient efficiency. Itaú is backing regenerative agriculture in the Cerrado as Brazil assesses the carbon-market potential of better farming practices.

In Funding & M&A, Vibra Foods has bought back Tyson Foods’ 40% stake, returning the poultry producer to full Brazilian ownership. Itaú is launching the country’s largest FIAGRO, targeting up to $1 billion in agricultural credit assets.

In Macro & Markets, Brazil’s agricultural cooperatives are approaching $100 billion in annual revenue, but fertilizer deliveries and domestic production have fallen sharply. Meanwhile, Chinese agrochemical companies are moving beyond generics to launch their own brands—and eventually patented products—in Brazil.

AgTech

• Embrapa to Host Brazil Microorganism Depository

• Calice Brings Virtual Crop Trials to Brazil

• Biologicals Find Fertile Ground in Paraguay

• Brazil’s AgTech Ecosystem Grows 84% in Six Years

• Agrofy Retreats from Brazil to Bet on AI

• CNH Named Brazil’s Most Innovative Company

Climate Tech

• Açaí Waste Powers Nanofertilizer

• Tello Scales Biointelligent Fertilizer Production

• São Paulo Climate Week Seeks Its Own Identity

• Itaú Backs Regenerative Farming in the Cerrado

• Brazil Ag Could Generate 314 Million Carbon Credits

Funding & M&A

• Vibra Foods Buys Back Tyson’s 40% Stake

• Itaú Launches Brazil’s Largest FIAGRO

Macro & Markets

• Brazil’s Agricultural Cooperatives Near $100 Billion

• Brazil’s Fertilizer Deliveries Fall 14.7%

• Chinese Agrochemical Makers Move Beyond Generics

AgTech

Embrapa to Host Brazil Microorganism Depository — Embrapa will establish Brazil’s first International Depositary Authority for microorganisms used in biotechnology patent applications. Backed by approximately US$3 million from Finep and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, the three-year project will allow biological samples to be deposited domestically rather than sent abroad. Once accredited under the Budapest Treaty, Brazilian deposits will be recognized across 92 member countries, reducing costs and delays while strengthening protection for innovations in bioinputs, microbial pesticides and other biological technologies. Source: Forbes

Calice Brings Virtual Crop Trials to Brazil — Argentine startup Calice uses AI and computational modelling to simulate how seeds, biologicals and crop-protection products perform across different environments, reducing the time, cost and risk of physical trials. Its platform has helped identify around 40% more commercial soybean candidates using roughly half the test sites. Backed by a US$2.5 million seed round, Calice already works with Syngenta, BASF, Corteva and other major players and expects Brazil to generate 40% of its global revenue within five years. Source: AgFeed

Biologicals Find Fertile Ground in Paraguay — Brazilian biological-input companies Agrivalle and Gênica are expanding in Paraguay, attracted by lower interest rates, cheaper energy, faster product registration and growing farmer appetite for technology. Adoption remains below Brazil’s level, but the companies see faster growth potential in soybeans and corn. Agrivalle is strengthening distribution through Agrotec, while both businesses are evaluating opportunities in the emerging Chaco agricultural frontier. Source: The AgriBiz

Brazil’s AgTech Ecosystem Grows 84% in Six Years — The number of Brazilian AgTech startups increased from 1,125 in 2019 to 2,075 in 2025, according to Radar AgTech Brasil. The ecosystem grew another 5% last year as startups expanded across precision agriculture, AI, biotechnology, bioinputs, traceability, finance and carbon markets. Farms, cooperatives and agribusinesses are also becoming active testing grounds for new technologies, helping startups validate solutions and connect them with producers’ needs. Source: Portal do Agronegócio

Agrofy Retreats from Brazil to Bet on AI — Agrofy has suspended its Brazilian operations and cut its remaining local team after raising more than US$65 million to build the “Mercado Libre of agriculture.” Once responsible for 40% of the marketplace’s business volume, Brazil lost momentum as the agricultural inputs and machinery markets weakened. Agrofy will now concentrate on Argentina and AI, with plans to return through a new business model and potential partnerships. Source: AgFeed

CNH Named Brazil’s Most Innovative Company — Agricultural machinery maker CNH topped the Valor Inovação Brasil 2026 ranking after outperforming 269 other companies. CNH said it has used the sector’s worst downturn in 15 years to develop solutions that deliver lasting efficiency gains rather than relying solely on cost cuts. Cargill Nutrition and Animal Health led the agribusiness category, while Indovinya won in chemicals. Source: Globo Rural

Climate Tech

Açaí Waste Powers Nanofertilizer — Embrapa and the Federal University of Ceará have developed a nanofertilizer from discarded açaí pits that increased corn growth by 24% and sorghum growth by 164% in initial tests. Applied at just 10 milligrams per liter, it also boosted root growth by 23% and 59%, respectively. The technology could turn plentiful agroindustrial waste into a lower-dose fertilizer with less runoff, although scaling production beyond the laboratory remains a challenge. Source: Embrapa

Tello Scales Biointelligent Fertilizer Production — Created by Coopercitrus, Amaggi, Tecnobeef, AgroCP and two farming families, Tello has invested R$180 million in its first São Paulo plant and plans a similar facility in Mato Grosso. Its organic-coated fertilizers could improve phosphorus-use efficiency by up to 50% and reduce potassium and nitrogen use by around 30%. Each plant is expected to produce 300,000 tonnes annually and generate up to R$900 million in revenue at full capacity. Source: AgFeed

São Paulo Climate Week Seeks Its Own Identity — São Paulo Climate Week brought together around 300 activities across 30 venues from August 3–7 under a new unified structure. Now led by OFuturo, the event is building a distinctly Latin American agenda around six themes, including agriculture and food systems, biodiversity and climate finance. Working groups will continue developing projects, partnerships and funding opportunities after the week ends. Source: Capital Reset

Itaú Backs Regenerative Farming in the Cerrado — IDB Invest has approved a US$30 million loan to Itaú to finance regenerative practices among soybean farmers, with total support potentially reaching US$59 million. The six-year program initially targets 200,000 hectares, potentially expanding to 600,000, and could mobilize R$1 billion. Credit will support cover crops and bioinputs, alongside technical assistance and systems to monitor soil quality, emissions and deforestation. Source: Capital Reset

Brazilian Agriculture Could Generate 314 Million Carbon Credits — Brazil’s agricultural sector could generate up to 314.3 million carbon credits by 2035, potentially worth R$3.5 billion, according to an ABAG-backed study. Improved cropland management represents the largest opportunity, alongside animal-waste methane recovery, enteric methane reduction and biochar. However, revenues depend on regulation, international demand and government authorization of credits under the Paris Agreement. Source: Forbes

Funding & M&A

Vibra Foods Buys Back Tyson’s 40% Stake — Vibra Foods has returned to full Brazilian ownership after repurchasing the 40% stake acquired by Tyson Foods in 2020. The undisclosed deal ends the joint venture but preserves the companies’ commercial partnership. During Tyson’s investment, Vibra deployed more than R$500 million, expanded exports to around 80 countries and grew its workforce from 4,000 to nearly 7,000. The company now plans further international expansion and acquisitions. Source: CNN Brasil

Itaú Launches Brazil’s Largest FIAGRO — Itaú aims to raise up to R$4.85 billion through a fund that will acquire agricultural credit assets, including CRAs, LCAs and CPRs, originated within the bank’s own ecosystem. The structure allows Itaú to recycle capital into new rural lending while offering investors four maturities paying 91.5% to 93% of the CDI. Investor protection includes subordinated units held by Itaú and the repurchase of defaulted assets. Source: AgFeed

Macro & Markets

Brazil’s Agricultural Cooperatives Near $100 Billion — Brazil’s agricultural cooperatives generated $100 billion in revenue in 2025, up 11.2% after growth of just 1.9% in 2024. The rebound was driven by stronger prices for coffee, poultry, pork and agricultural inputs, alongside increasingly diversified operations. The country’s 1,254 agricultural cooperatives now represent 1.13 million members, employ 277,226 people and account for 10.3% of Brazilian agribusiness exports. Source: AgFeed

Brazil’s Fertilizer Deliveries Fall 14.7% — Fertilizer deliveries fell to 3.16 million tonnes in May, while domestic production dropped 26.2% and imports declined 9.4%. ANDA attributed the slowdown to geopolitical tensions, unfavorable barter ratios, scarce credit, high interest rates and El Niño risks. Domestic production fell 17.1% during the first five months of 2026, partly due to higher sulfur prices. Source: CNN Brasil

Chinese Agrochemical Makers Move Beyond Generics — Chinese suppliers already account for an estimated 85% of Brazil’s crop-protection chemicals and active ingredients, but are now pushing their own brands and preparing to introduce patented molecules and biopesticides. Nearly 70% of exhibitors at São Paulo’s Agrochemshow were Chinese. Rainbow reportedly generates over US$700 million in Brazil, while Synwill plans to expand locally as manufacturers move closer to Brazilian customers. Source: AgFeed

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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I once spent a day with Erai Maggi, the lesser-known cousin of Blairo Maggi, Brazil’s so-called King of Soybeans. At the time, Erai had already built an operation of around 800,000 acres in Mato Grosso.

But what made the day memorable wasn’t the size of the farm. It was that a small team from Rabobank was shadowing him the entire time, firing off question after question, with Erai answering each one off the top of his head.

That part isn’t unusual. Farmers, even big ones, still carry most of their operation in their heads. Ask about a particular field, harvest or machinery problem from several years ago, and many can recall the details instantly, especially if it was a painful memory.

What was unusual was that Rabobank could dedicate an entire team of analysts to spending the day on his farm. For a farmer the size of Erai Maggi, the bank spared no expense getting to know its customer. Not just for regulatory box-ticking. It made straightforward business sense.

The average farmer does not receive the same red-carpet treatment. There is no team of analysts walking the fields, no long discussion about planting decisions and no detailed assessment of how well the operation is managed.

The bank may know the crop, the region, the size of the property, the collateral and whether previous loans have been repaid. The farmer himself largely disappears.

Basket Case

Most farmers get treated like the commodities they grow. They’re priced as a basket of risk, with the weaker and less visible farmers pushing up the cost for everyone else. The best farmers end up subsidising the worst ones.

Banks have good reasons to be wary of farming. It is seasonal, exposed to weather and full of things that can go wrong between planting and payment, even when the farmer makes the right decisions.

The deeper problem is that banks have never been particularly good at measuring this risk. They can see the land, check repayment history and ask for guarantees, but struggle to see whether the farmer plants on time, uses inputs well and produces consistently.

Banks therefore fall back on what they can measure, usually land, collateral and scale. This naturally favours larger farmers, who have more assets to pledge and loans large enough to justify detailed analysis.

Two producers may grow soybeans in the same municipality but operate very differently. One may plant early, control costs and consistently produce above-average yields. The other may plant late, use inputs poorly and deliver erratic results.

Without enough information, both can still look much the same to a traditional lender, leaving the stronger farmer paying more than his individual risk profile would justify.

Ground Truth

That gap is starting to close as farming becomes more digital. Satellite imagery can show when a crop is planted, how it develops and when it is harvested. Farm-management systems, connected machinery, digital marketplaces and electronic transactions add further evidence of how the business is being run.

Together, they create a digital trail that lenders can follow across thousands of farms. One strong harvest may be luck, but consistent performance across different conditions says much more about the farmer’s ability to manage risk.

Digital technology makes production risk easier to measure and helps distinguish regional problems from those linked to the way an individual farm is managed.

By combining this operational data with traditional financial information, AgFintechs can assess not only the borrower, but also the productive operation expected to repay the loan.

Farmers already manage different fields in different ways. Finance is now starting to apply the same thinking to individual farmers.

A smaller farmer with a strong production record may be a safer borrower than a larger neighbour with more land but weaker management. Credit can begin to follow capability rather than just acreage and collateral.

Better information allows lower-risk farmers to receive larger limits, faster decisions or better rates, while weaker applicants can be monitored more closely or left out of the portfolio.

The lender gets a better-performing loan book, while the farmer receives finance that reflects how the operation is run. Good farming begins to matter more than size alone.

That can create an upward spiral. Better-financed farmers can invest in seed, inputs, irrigation, storage, machinery, technical advice and AgTech solutions.

Those investments improve productivity and resilience, while producing even more information through digital purchases, connected machinery and management systems.

The farmer becomes easier to understand, improving the next credit decision and potentially lowering the cost of future finance. Better data supports better credit, better credit supports better farming, and better farming produces more data.

The old model often works in reverse. Poor visibility raises the cost of credit, limiting the investment needed to improve both production and visibility, and reinforcing the belief that agriculture is simply too risky.

Growing Apart

Brazil has also seen what happens when agricultural distribution and credit try to scale before anyone finds a replacement for local knowledge.

The traditional input retailer often knows the farmer personally: who pays late but always pays, who is expanding too quickly and which family has managed the same property well for generations.

It is not a sophisticated credit model, but it contains valuable information that rarely appears in formal records. Companies such as AgroGalaxy and Lavoro set out to bring regional retailers together under larger platforms, gaining scale in purchasing, distribution and farmer finance.

The challenge is that consolidation can weaken the relationships on which many original credit decisions depend. The customer remains on the system, while much of the context disappears.

The problems later faced by these businesses have several causes, including leverage, working-capital pressure and difficult market conditions. But they raise a wider question: what happens when exposure to thousands of farmers grows faster than the ability to understand their production risk?

The old retailer model is personal but difficult to scale. Consolidation creates scale but risks losing the personal touch. Data-driven underwriting may be the missing bridge, preserving local visibility across a much larger network.

The same logic could also help solve one of AgTech’s biggest problems: adoption. Farmers often have to pay today for benefits that may only appear after harvest. Embedded finance can help close that gap by matching the cost more closely with the expected return.

An AgTech company with a trusted network of farmers and good visibility into production risk does not need to become a bank. It can partner with a bank, credit fund, input supplier or specialist lender.

Its data can improve underwriting, its platform can distribute the finance and the finance can help farmers adopt the technology. Farm-management platforms, satellite companies and grain marketplaces each have a different view of whether the farmer is likely to produce and repay.

Used properly, that information can make embedded finance a natural part of the business model rather than an unrelated product added later.

Beyond the Basket

AgFintech may provide the financial layer that helps the rest of AgTech scale.

For investors, Nubank offers a useful comparison. It started with a simple credit card and grew by serving people who had long been overcharged and underserved by traditional banks.

Agriculture offers a similar opportunity, with one important difference: AgFintechs can potentially understand not only the borrower, but also the productive activity expected to repay the loan.

The same farm data may eventually support other sources of revenue, from crop insurance and sustainability-linked credit to traceability, environmental service payments and the measurement and verification of farming practices.

A digital record showing that a farmer is a good credit risk may also help demonstrate compliance with evolving ESG standards, including how the farm protects soil, uses water more efficiently or reduces chemical inputs. Once the farm becomes visible, the same information can do several jobs.

Twenty years ago, knowing one farmer properly might have required a team of international analysts following him around Mato Grosso for the day.

Technology can increasingly provide a similar level of visibility across thousands of farms. Ordinary farmers no longer need to disappear inside a risk basket, and credit can begin reflecting how well they farm rather than simply how much land they own.

Banks once knew the basket. AgFintech may finally allow them to know the farmer.

Thanks for reading.

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups in Latin America.

In this week’s Brazil AgTech news, Label Rouge is targeting premium consumers with milder-smelling free-range eggs, while Embrapa has trained AI models to identify drought-tolerant corn with more than 90% accuracy. A new $2 billion credit line could accelerate adoption of locally developed agricultural technology, and Cummins is preparing to expand into tractors, battery storage and lower-emission farm energy.

In Climate Tech, indigenous Brazil nut producers in Rondônia are receiving additional payments for conserving forests and biodiversity. Maringá will host Brazil’s first blue-economy innovation cluster, WRI Brasil is proposing a unified traceability framework for soy and beef, and federal agencies have introduced common standards for measuring native vegetation restoration across all six Brazilian biomes.

In Funding & M&A, Mantiqueira is returning to the capital markets with a $30 million offering, Symbiosis is seeking $100 million to scale its native-forest timber and carbon model, and Coamo is acquiring and leasing more assets from financially troubled Belagrícola as it expands across Paraná.

In Macro & Markets, China has signalled that it may increase fertilizer shipments to Brazil as more than 6.1 million tonnes move through the country’s import pipeline. The combination offers some reassurance ahead of the next planting season, although Brazil’s heavy reliance on imported nutrients continues to leave farmers exposed to geopolitics, logistics and global prices.

AgTech

• Label Rouge Targets Premium Egg Market With Odor-Free Product

• Cummins Targets Brazil’s Agricultural Machinery and Energy Markets

• AI Identifies Drought-Tolerant Corn With Over 90% Accuracy

• Brazil Launches $2 Billion Credit Line for Agricultural Innovation

Climate Tech

• Indigenous Brazil Nut Producers Receive Environmental-Service Payments

• Portuguese Group Selects Maringá for Brazil’s First Blue-Economy Cluster

• WRI Calls for Single Traceability Framework for Soy and Beef

• Brazil Sets National Rules for Native Vegetation Restoration

Funding & M&A

• Mantiqueira Returns to the CRA Market With $30 Million Offering

• Symbiosis Seeks $100 Million to Scale Native-Forest Timber Model

• Coamo Expands Through Acquisition of Belagrícola Assets

Macro & Markets

• China Signals More Fertilizer Supply as Brazilian Imports Accelerate

AgTech

Label Rouge Targets Premium Egg Market With Odor-Free Product - Brazilian egg producer Label Rouge has developed what it says are the country’s first free-range eggs without the strong smell often associated with eggs. The company attributes the milder aroma, redder yolks and firmer whites to outdoor rearing, plant-based feed and tighter quality controls. With Brazilian egg consumption expected to exceed 300 per person in 2026, Label Rouge is betting that sensory quality, animal welfare and product differentiation can support a more premium positioning in a fast-growing market. Source: Globo Rural

Cummins Targets Brazil’s Agricultural Machinery and Energy Markets - Cummins is expanding its agricultural business in Brazil after sales of engines and power generators to the sector rose more than 20% in 2025. The company plans to enter the tractor market from 2028 through an engine being validated with XCMG, while also growing sales of generators, microgrids and battery-storage systems for farms and agribusinesses. Cummins is adapting engines for ethanol, biomethane and higher biodiesel blends, and expects agricultural demand to rise as rural operations require more reliable and lower-emission energy solutions. Source: AgFeed

AI Identifies Drought-Tolerant Corn With Over 90% Accuracy - Embrapa and researchers at Brazil’s Center for Research in Genomics Applied to Climate Change have developed a system combining drones, multispectral sensors and artificial intelligence to identify corn hybrids that are more tolerant to drought. Tested on 28 hybrids over two years, the models reproduced conventional field assessments with accuracy above 90% in some scenarios. The approach could allow breeding programs to screen thousands of plants more quickly, reducing manual measurements and accelerating the development of climate-resilient cultivars. Source: Canal Rural

Brazil Launches $2 Billion Credit Line for Agricultural Innovation - Brazil’s National Monetary Council has approved a credit line of up to $2 billion to finance locally developed agricultural technology and equipment. Managed by Finep and partner financial institutions, the funding will support machinery, precision agriculture systems, rural connectivity and digital solutions produced in Brazil. Farmers, cooperatives and agricultural companies will be eligible, with the program designed to accelerate technology adoption, raise productivity and strengthen the domestic agricultural machinery industry. Source: Brasil 247

Climate Tech

Indigenous Brazil Nut Producers Receive Environmental-Service Payments - Indigenous communities in Rondônia have received an additional 20% payment for Brazil nuts produced during the 2025/26 harvest, recognising their role in conserving forests, biodiversity and local ecosystems. The agreement between Castanhas Ouro Verde and the Coopirb cooperative covers communities across roughly 236,000 hectares and forms part of an Embrapa-led project to improve quality, reduce losses and strengthen market access. About seven tonnes were sold under the model, with the premium managed collectively for community priorities. Source: Embrapa

Portuguese Group Selects Maringá for Brazil’s First Blue-Economy Cluster - Portuguese consultancy Vide de Grunwald has chosen Maringá, Paraná, to host its first blue-economy innovation cluster in Brazil. Developed with the State University of Maringá, the initiative will connect researchers, companies and investors around technologies for more sustainable water use, including aquaculture genetics, biotechnology, AI, veterinary science and waterTech. The cluster will begin by mapping local capabilities before establishing governance and a business-acceleration hub. Maringá was selected partly for the university’s expertise in tilapia genetics, with ambitions to become an international reference for blue-economy innovation. Source: Startups

WRI Calls for Single Traceability Framework for Soy and Beef - WRI Brasil has proposed harmonizing the country’s fragmented deforestation-monitoring and traceability systems into a single framework for soy and beef. The study reviewed 21 protocols, certifications and platforms, finding differences in cutoff dates, indirect-supplier controls and auditing standards that can confuse buyers and investors. Recommendations include integrating databases, simplifying audits, tracing soy back to the farm and accelerating monitoring of indirect cattle suppliers. The goal is to improve credibility, reduce trade risks and align Brazilian supply chains with international requirements. Source: Globo Rural

Brazil Sets National Rules for Native Vegetation Restoration - Brazil has introduced a national system to standardize how native vegetation recovery is monitored across all six biomes. Developed by Ibama, ICMBio, Embrapa and the Brazilian Forest Service, the model assesses ecological outcomes after a minimum four-year period using indicators such as ground cover, native plant density, species diversity and the presence of invasive species. The framework applies to 46 vegetation types and is intended to improve legal certainty, reduce inspection costs and support Brazil’s goal of restoring 12 million hectares by 2030. Source: Embrapa

Funding & M&A

Mantiqueira Returns to the Capital Markets With $30 Million Offering - Egg producer Mantiqueira has filed a public offering for approximately $30 million in agribusiness receivables certificates (CRAs), following a roughly $100 million issue last year. The single-tranche transaction will be backed by a financial CPR issued by the company and led by XP Investimentos. The unsecured deal comes as Mantiqueira accelerates expansion through new higher-value products, a low-carbon soy partnership with Bunge and its acquisition of Hickman’s Egg Ranch in the United States. JBS has shared control of the company since acquiring a 48.5% stake in 2025. Source: AgFeed

Symbiosis Seeks $100 Million to Scale Native-Forest Timber Model - Brazilian forestry company Symbiosis is seeking $100 million in debt and equity from international investors to expand its native-tree planting model in southern Bahia. Backed by Apple and financing from BNDES’ Climate Fund, the company plans to grow from 5,000 hectares to a further 10,000 hectares while combining certified timber, seedlings and carbon credits. A new sawmill will begin processing wood for decking, flooring and furniture, as Symbiosis aims to prove that restoring Atlantic Forest species can become a commercially viable alternative to harvesting natural forests. Source: The AgriBiz

Coamo Expands Through Acquisition of Belagrícola Assets - Coamo has acquired and leased agricultural units in five Paraná municipalities as Belagrícola restructures approximately $440 million in debt. The transaction extends a strategy that has already included the purchase of storage facilities and a seed-processing unit, with leased sites potentially converted into permanent acquisitions once documentation is regularized. Brazil’s largest agricultural cooperative is also investing about $13 million in new grain silos, largely financed by BNDES, to support storage expansion and its corn ethanol operations. Source: AgFeed

Macro & Markets

China Signals More Fertilizer Supply as Brazilian Imports Accelerate - China has indicated it is prepared to increase shipments of phosphate and nitrogen fertilizers to Brazil, responding to concerns over supply disruptions and rising geopolitical tensions. The signal comes as Brazilian ports handle a heavy fertilizer pipeline, with more than 6.1 million tonnes listed for unloading and Santos and Paranaguá accounting for the largest volumes. Brazil still imports more than 80% of the fertilizers it consumes, leaving farm costs and crop planning highly exposed to global trade, logistics and diplomatic relations. Source: Brasil 247 and AF News

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.

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In the mid-2000s, a young, bright-eyed Idaho farmer, Scott Harker, arrived in western Bahia chasing what looked like one of the great agricultural bargains of the time: land for around $100 an acre.

Go back another four decades and the numbers were even harder to believe. New Yorker Ed Zanini acquired, and later lost, vast areas of Mato Grosso for little more than $1 an acre.

Of course, these were not really farms. Not yet.

They were enormous stretches of scrubland, often without roads, electricity, reliable communications or much of the infrastructure needed to grow and move a crop. The land price was low because almost everything else still had to be built.

I covered both stories during my years as a journalist with DTN. From a distance, they looked like stories about buying cheap land. Up close, they were stories about how expensive cheap land can become.

A story this week brought those old frontier tales back to mind. Rabobank expects Brazil’s soybean area to stop expanding in the 2026/27 season, raising the possibility that the long race for new farmland is finally coming to an end.

That would mark a significant change. Brazil’s agricultural growth has long depended on turning cheap, undeveloped land into productive farms. Yet the low purchase price often hid the real cost.

Poor soil, weak infrastructure, expensive logistics and years of investment meant these acres were never truly easy.

What may now be ending is not the hard work, but the old growth model.

Instead of finding the next area to open, the focus may begin to shift toward producing more from the land already cleared. That has been the reality in most developed agricultural markets for decades. Brazil may now be entering the same phase.

For many years, expansion offered farmers two sources of return: income from the crops they produced and appreciation in the land beneath them. As roads, storage and nearby towns developed, land that had once looked remote and marginal became increasingly valuable.

That made expansion attractive even when the early operating economics were difficult. A farm didn’t need to generate its full potential immediately if the surrounding region was developing, infrastructure was improving and land values were rising.

Over time, this became one of the engines behind Brazil’s emergence as an agricultural superpower. Soybeans moved from the South into the Cerrado, then farther north and west. Towns appeared where there had been little more than bushes, scrub and a dirt road.

If soybean acreage stops growing, Brazil could find more of its future production through better use of the land it already farms.

That could mean higher yields, but also recovering degraded pasture, improving soil, integrating crops and livestock, using water and inputs more carefully and investing in technology that produces more value from every acre.

The pressure is coming mainly from the economics of expansion. Low soybean prices, high interest rates and expensive inputs can make improving existing land more attractive than clearing new areas. Many of the remaining frontier regions are also farther from ports, more costly to prepare and harder to operate.

Each new acre is therefore becoming a more complicated bet. In the past, rising land values and wider margins could compensate for weak logistics, difficult soils or several years of disappointing returns. Today, there is less room to carry those costs while waiting for a farm to mature.

Farmers are likely to think more carefully about where the next real should go. Buying another property may still make sense, but soil correction, irrigation, crop-livestock integration, biological inputs, storage, automation and better use of data may offer a clearer return.

The frontier has not disappeared, but the threshold for expanding into it is rising.

Improving existing land is not a simple substitute for expansion. Recovering pasture, correcting soil, installing irrigation or upgrading storage all require capital, often before the benefits are visible. That is difficult when margins are tight and many farmers are focused on preserving cash.

There is also no universal formula. The right investment depends on the crop, soil, water, location and quality of management. Intensification can reduce pressure on native vegetation, but only if it genuinely raises productivity rather than simply pushing cattle or expansion farther into the frontier.

For Brazil, this would mark a deeper change than a pause in soybean acreage. The country’s future growth would depend less on finding the next cheap piece of land and more on understanding what the land already in use could become.

Scott Harker and Ed Zanini appeared to be buying extraordinarily cheap acres. In reality, the purchase price was probably the cheapest part of the deal. They were taking on the cost and risk of turning raw land into farms.

For much of the past 50 years, that was Brazil’s agricultural story: find the next frontier, endure the hardship and build something where almost nothing existed before.

The next chapter may be less Wild West, but no less important. It will be about turning farms into better farms.

The frontier is still there. It has simply moved inside the fence.

Thanks for reading.

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups in Latin America.

This week’s Brazil AgTech Report opens with cattle as collateral, with Cowmed completing the first B3-registered loan backed by tokenized cows. John Deere is bringing precision-ag electronics production to Brazil, Embrapa is building the country’s first international microorganism depository, and Ambev is testing AB InBev’s first protein beer.

In Climate Tech, Acelen is combining macaúba and AI to bring down the cost of sustainable aviation fuel. Nearly $6 billion in sustainable agriculture funds is looking for investable projects in Brazil, while B.Kemi is turning agricultural waste into biodegradable cosmetic ingredients.

Funding & M&A brings a busy mix of biotech, soil intelligence and hard assets. Terra Genomics raised $3.6 million, Stenon secured $21 million for expansion in Brazil, Zen-Noh bought 30% of Grupo Cereal, and major deals reshaped port and bioenergy assets.

In Macro & Markets, Brazil is closing in on the US as the world’s largest agricultural exporter, while weaker margins are cooling farmland prices and slowing soy expansion. Brazil has also banned force-fed foie gras, and coffee and beef were left outside the latest US tariff increase.

AgTech

• Cowmed Completes First B3-Registered Loan Backed by Tokenized Cattle

• John Deere to Produce Precision Agriculture Electronics in Brazil

• Embrapa to Host Brazil’s First Depository for Patentable Microorganisms

• Ambev Launches AB InBev’s First Protein Beer in Brazil

• Docket and B3 Partner to Speed Up CPR Registratio

Climate Tech

• Acelen Uses AI and Macaúba to Cut Sustainable Aviation Fuel Costs

• Nearly $6 Billion in Sustainable Agriculture Funds Puts Brazil in the Spotlight

• B.Kemi Turns Agricultural Waste into Award-Winning Cosmetic Ingredients

Funding & M&A

• Terra Genomics Raises $3.6 Million to Engineer Better Biological Inputs

• Stenon Raises $21 Million to Expand Real-Time Soil Analysis in Brazil

• Zen-Noh Acquires 30% of Grupo Cereal

• Simpar Sells Bahia Grain and Fertilizer Port to ICTSI for $360 Million

• Raízen Sells Caarapó Sugar and Ethanol Plant to Adecoagro for $152 Million

Macro & Markets

• Brazil Could Overtake the US as the World’s Largest Agricultural Exporter

• Brazil’s Soy Slowdown Reshapes the Farmland Market

• Brazil Bans Foie Gras Produced Through Force-Feeding

• US Exempts Brazilian Coffee and Beef from New 12.5% Tariff

AgTech

Cowmed Completes First B3-Registered Loan Backed by Tokenized Cattle - Cowmed and Target FIDC completed Brazil’s first formal credit transaction using tokenized dairy cows as collateral, moving about $20,000. Smart collars monitor each animal’s health, behaviour and location, converting the data into a unique digital identity registered with B3. The system allows lenders to value and track herds without physical inspections, reduces the risk of duplicate collateral and could unlock working capital for farmers. Cowmed currently monitors about 100,000 cows across more than 1,000 farms. Source: CNN Brasil

John Deere to Produce Precision Agriculture Electronics in Brazil - John Deere will invest about $15 million to expand its Canoas plant in Rio Grande do Sul and begin producing electronic components for agricultural and construction machinery in July 2027. The new line will manufacture intelligent control modules, high-precision StarFire GPS receivers, monitors and guidance systems for the Brazilian market. The move is intended to reduce dependence on imported components, deepen local technological capabilities and improve supply-chain agility. Source: AgFeed

Embrapa to Host Brazil’s First Depository for Patentable Microorganisms - Embrapa will establish Brazil’s first International Depositary Authority for microorganisms used in biotechnology patent applications. Backed by about $3 million from Finep and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, the three-year project will allow companies and researchers to deposit biological samples domestically rather than sending them abroad. Once accredited under the Budapest Treaty, deposits made in Brazil will be recognized across 92 member countries, reducing costs and delays while strengthening protection for bioinputs, microbial pesticides and other biological technologies. Source: Forbes

Ambev Launches AB InBev’s First Protein Beer in Brazil - Ambev will launch Spaten Pro, AB InBev’s first protein beer worldwide, in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro in late August. Developed over five years and more than 100 prototypes, the alcohol-free Munich Dunkel contains 10 grams of protein per 350 ml can. The product targets growing demand for high-protein, lower-calorie and alcohol-free beverages, with Brazil serving as the test market before any international rollout. Source: Forbes

Docket and B3 Partner to Speed Up CPR Registration - Docket partnered with Trillia, B3’s data and analytics arm, to create a platform that accelerates CPR issuance and registration while giving lenders better visibility into documentation, collateral and default risk. The companies say the solution can cut total processing time by 50%, with registration falling from 15–20 days to 3–4 days. It covers physical and financial CPRs and integrates with registries and certifiers including ONR, RDT, CDT, B3 and CERC. Source: AgFeed

Climate Tech

Acelen Uses AI and Macaúba to Cut Sustainable Aviation Fuel Costs - Acelen Renováveis is betting that Brazil’s native macaúba palm can make sustainable aviation fuel competitive with fossil kerosene. The company plans a $1.5 billion biorefinery in Bahia capable of producing 1 billion litres of SAF or renewable diesel annually. At its Agripark research centre, AI developed with a local university increased seed germination from 3% to 85%, while automation cut seed-processing time from 40 seconds to one. Acelen aims to plant 144,000 hectares, largely on degraded land, and says macaúba produces ten times more oil per hectare than soy. Source: The AgriBiz

Nearly $6 Billion in Sustainable Agriculture Funds Puts Brazil in the Spotlight - International funds have almost $6 billion available for regenerative agriculture, deforestation-free supply chains, land restoration and other sustainable farming projects, with Brazil emerging as a leading destination. Vehicles include the Green Climate Fund, AGRI3, &Green, Mirova and Brazil’s Growth Next-Generation Agriculture fund. The capital is available, but the bottleneck is investable projects: funders increasingly require reliable data, measurable outcomes, strong governance and standardized indicators before committing. Source: Forbes

B.Kemi Turns Agricultural Waste into Award-Winning Cosmetic Ingredients - Following last week’s story on Kapeh’s coffee-based cosmetics, Espírito Santo startup B.Kemi is also finding beauty in agricultural by-products. The company won the sustainability category at the Clean Beauty Awards with a fully biodegradable exfoliant made from rice husks and banana-derived microcellulose. Its broader aim is to replace imported and petroleum-based cosmetic ingredients with locally produced biomaterials made from Brazilian agricultural waste. Source: Tribuna Online

Funding & M&A

Terra Genomics Raises $3.6 Million to Engineer Better Biological Inputs - Terra Genomics raised $3.6 million in a seed round led by Pitanga Redux, with participation from Bold.t Capital, to build a research platform in Campinas. The startup combines metabolic engineering, synthetic biology and AI to genetically improve microorganisms already used in biological inputs, targeting traits such as nitrogen fixation, phosphorus solubilization and pest control. Terra says its design-build-test-learn process can cut development cycles from two to three years to as little as two months, while also creating stronger patent protection for new products. Source: AgFeed

Stenon Raises $21 Million to Expand Real-Time Soil Analysis in Brazil - German agtech Stenon raised about $21 million in a Series B led by Pymwymic, with backing from the DeepTech & Climate Fonds and existing investors. Brazil is a priority market for the expansion, with the company already operating in Goiás, Mato Grosso, Paraná and São Paulo. Its FarmLab platform combines sensors, AI and agronomic models to measure plant-available nitrogen and soil organic carbon directly in the field. Stenon says customers have reduced nitrogen fertilizer use by 20%–40% while increasing yields by 2%–8%. Source: Startups

Zen-Noh Acquires 30% of Grupo Cereal to Expand in Brazilian Agribusiness - Japanese agricultural cooperative federation Zen-Noh agreed to acquire a 30% stake in Grupo Cereal, a Goiás-based grain origination, storage, soy-processing and biodiesel company with annual revenue above $1 billion. The founding Barauna family will retain control and management. The partnership is expected to support new investment in storage, biodiesel capacity and geographic expansion, while helping connect Brazilian grain production more directly with Asian markets through Zen-Noh’s global network. Financial terms were not disclosed. Source: AgFeed

Simpar Sells Bahia Grain and Fertilizer Port to ICTSI for $360 Million - Simpar agreed to sell CS Porto Aratu to Philippine port operator ICTSI in a transaction valued at about $360 million, including roughly $200 million of net debt. The two terminals connect by rail to the Matopiba agricultural region and handle fertilizers, minerals, soy and corn, with combined annual capacity of up to 9.5 million tonnes following recent upgrades. The deal marks ICTSI’s entry into Brazil’s dry-bulk segment and gives the global operator a strategic export platform in the Northeast. Completion remains subject to regulatory approval. Source: AgFeed

Raízen Sells Caarapó Sugar and Ethanol Plant to Adecoagro for $152 Million - Raízen agreed to sell its Caarapó mill in Mato Grosso do Sul to Adecoagro for about $152 million, including associated sugarcane assets and supplier contracts. The plant produces sugar, hydrated and anhydrous ethanol, and renewable power, and sits near two other Adecoagro units, creating potential operating synergies. The divestment is part of Raízen’s effort to simplify its portfolio and improve returns while undergoing an out-of-court restructuring involving more than $13 billion of debt. The deal remains subject to regulatory approval. Source: Exame

Macro & Markets

Brazil Could Overtake the US as the World’s Largest Agricultural Exporter - Brazil is on track to surpass the US in agricultural export revenues this year, according to a Financial Times analysis. The gap narrowed to just 1.2% in 2025, when US exports reached $171 billion versus Brazil’s $169.2 billion, after standing at 137% in America’s favour two decades earlier. Rising Brazilian competitiveness, stronger Chinese demand and trade tensions affecting US farmers are accelerating the shift, although the US still leads global corn exports. Source: AgFeed

Brazil’s Soy Slowdown Reshapes the Farmland Market - After more than two decades of expansion, Brazil’s soybean area could stop growing in 2026/27 as weaker prices, tight margins, expensive credit and input uncertainty reduce incentives to open new land. Rabobank expects future growth to rely more on productivity and double cropping. The pressure is already reshaping farmland finance: land in Sorriso reportedly fell from about $40,000 per hectare three years ago to $20,000 today, while some producers are accepting sale-and-leaseback deals at even lower values to raise liquidity. Fiagros see the downturn as an opportunity to finance stronger operators and acquire discounted assets. Source: The AgriBiz and Exame

Brazil Bans Foie Gras Produced Through Force-Feeding - Brazil has prohibited the production and sale of foie gras and other products obtained through forced animal feeding, classifying the practice as animal cruelty. Violations can result in fines and prison sentences of three months to one year. Brazil becomes the second country, after India, to impose a nationwide ban, although similar production restrictions already exist in several other countries. The measure affects only a small domestic market, with three Brazilian producers reportedly using the technique. Source: g1

US Exempts Brazilian Coffee and Beef from New 12.5% Tariff - The US excluded Brazilian coffee and beef from a new 12.5% tariff introduced after a Section 301 investigation into Brazilian trade practices. The exemption list also covers planting seeds, selected fertilizer and pesticide inputs, animal-feed ingredients, leather and certain sugar products within existing quotas. The tariff takes effect on July 24, with exceptions for some goods already in transit. Source: Exame

That’s all for this week, thanks for reading,

KFG

Kieran Finbar Gartlan is an Irish native with over 30 years of experience living and working in Brazil. He is Managing Partner at The Yield Lab Latam, a leading venture capital firm investing in Agrifood and Climate Tech startups across Latin America.