Region Profile

IPNI Latin America Southern Cone Program
Overview of the agriculture of the Southern Cone region of Latin America
The Latin America Southern Cone Program (LASC) of IPNI includes five countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay (Fig. 1). The total area of the region is of 5220 km², and the total population is of 69.5 million.
The main crops in the region are shown in Fig. 2. Soybean is the most important field crop with over 22 million ha, followed by wheat, and maize. Other important field crops are sunflower, barley, and rice (Table 1). Soybean is the main crop for Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
Table 1. Area (ha), production (ton) and average yield (kg/ha) of the main field crops at the five countries of the Southern Cone region for the 2008/09 growing season.

COUNTRY (Source)		Soybean	Wheat	Maize	Sunflower	Sorghum	Barley	Rice	TOTAL
Argentina (MIinAgri)	Area	18000000	4732000	3489000	1957000	806000	589000	205450	29778450
	Production	31000000	8373000	13080000	2440000	1752000	1265660	1325000	59235660
	Yield	1722	1769	3749	1247	2174	2149	6449	1989
Bolivia (INE)	Area	835039	134795	408705	259218	134327	55202	178533	2005819
	Production	1225885	161553	1000385	298642	436133	46936	435960	3605494
	Yield	1468	1199	2448	1152	3247	850	2442	1798
Chile (ODEPA)	Area	-	280644	128211	4355	-	18513	23680	455403
	Production	-	1237861	1365472	7607	-	95869	121400	2828209
	Yield	-	4411	10650	1747	-	5178	5127	6210
Paraguay (CAPECO, INBIO & IICA)	Area	2644856	508954	634206	180536	23000	-	70000	4061552
	Production	5969166	1063200	1400000	280000	27000	-	216650	8956016
	Yield	2257	2089	2207	1551	1172	-	3095	2205
Uruguay (DIEA)	Area	577800	475500	87500	55100	68100	129900	160700	1554600
	Production	1028600	1356600	269800	50600	324200	409500	1287200	4726500
	Yield	1780	2853	3083	918	4761	3152	8010	3040
TOTAL REGION	Area	22057695	6131893	4747622	2456209	1031427	792615	638363	37855824
	Production	39223651	12192214	17115657	3076849	2539333	1817965	3386210	79351879
	Yield	1778	1988	3605	1253	2462	2294	5305	2096

Fertilizer consumption at the region is estimated at 2.23 million ton of N+P₂O₅+K₂O for 2007 and 2008 (Table 2). Argentina consumption sharply dropped in 2008 but it represents approximately 50% of the total consumption in the region, followed by Chile with approximately 22%, Uruguay with 14%, Paraguay with 13%, and Bolivia with less than 1%.

Table 2. Estimated nutrient consumption at the Southern Cone countries.

COUNTRY	YEAR	Consumption (thousand ton)
		N	P2O5	K2O	TOTAL N+P2O5+K2O
Argentina	2008	627	460	42	1129
Bolivia	2007	6	7	2	15
Chile	2008	306	148	33	487
Paraguay	2007	42	167	82	291
Uruguay	2008	114	146	44	304
TOTAL		1095	928	203	2226

Elaborated from data of Fertilizar AC; Fundacruz-APIA; ODEPA; Cargill; and MGAP-DF.

Situation at Argentina

Agricultural production, specifically grain production, has steadily increased in Argentina until 2010 (Fig. 3). Total grain production reached a record of almost 100 million t considering the main four grain crops: soybean, maize, wheat, and sunflower.

This increase largely came from increased soybean area, as well as from increases in maize, soybean and wheat yields (Fig 4 and 5). Large new areas in the Pampas and in non-Pampas regions (northeastern and northwestern) have been opened to soybean production.

The fertilizer market accompanied the increase in grain production until 2007, growing from 0.3 million t in 1991 to almost 3.7 million t in 2007, a 12-fold growth in sixteen years (Fig. 5). International and national conditions in 2008 and 2009, highly affected fertilizer consumption which dropped from 3.7 million t in 2007 to 2.6 and 2.47 million t in 2008 and 2009, respectively. By 2010, fertilizer consumption recovered reaching 3.37 million ton of fertilizer products.
Nutrient balances have improved for N, P, and S along the last 20 years (Fig. 6), however they are still negative with 38%. 54%, less than 23%, and 33% of the N, P, K, and S applied respect to the N, P, K, and S extracted by the main four grain crops (soybean, maize, wheat, and sunflower).
The need for higher productivity and efficiency plus the need of improving soil nutrient balances, result in excellent perspectives for the fertilizer market. World demand of food, energy, fiber, and feed is an important driver of this potential growth in grain production and fertilizer consumption. Productive and sustainable intensification of agriculture should be based on increased productivity per resource and input unit along time and space (i.e., more kg/ha/year), improved resource and inputs use efficiencies, and involving cropping systems not just annual crops. For the fertilizer industry, this growing scenario has shown in new projects and investments in fertilizer production plants and logistical operations at ports.

IPNI, Latin America-Southern Cone,has developed research and educational programs on balanced fertilization following the 4RS Nutrient Stewardshio, the right source at the right rate, time and place, in collaboration with national institutes of agriculture of the region, universities, farmer's organizations, agronomists associations, and others. Most of this work is shown at this website and in other activities such as our quareterly Informaciones Agronomicas, publications, presentations and training sessions, and field meetings.