Dry weather early in Brazil’s growing season could trim the top off that country’s soybean output this year. But the big impact of the early rainfall deficit will likely be seen in the size of Brazil’s corn crop that is planted right after soybeans, according to Claudio Serafini, a Brazilian agronomist and agricultural guide.

“I think the second season is going to be an issue here,” Serafini said last week during the 2021 Iowa Farm Bureau Federation Economic Summit webinar series. “We could be seeing a significant loss of production in our second crop corn.”

Along with the weather, Serafini told IFBF webinar participants that farmers in Brazil are anxiously watching Chinese soybean buying patterns, their government’s progress on infrastructure improvements and the potential for increased pressure on climate change measures from the...