Basf sees Brazil as the Worlds barn
DCI - 11/06/2007
German Basf sees a very positive 2008 for Brazil in the agricultural market. Basf expects to grow above the value of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Brazil next year which, according to the company's expectation, will be 5% or 6%. Brazil is the second main World market for the company, second only to the United States. According to the VP of Agricultural Products for Latin America, Walter Dissinger, if the prices of commodities remain at the levels they are, and if sugar and alcohol recover the prices, Brazil will be the greatest agricultural zone of the world. Basf's agribusiness in the South America represents nearly 30% of the total businesses of the company in sales. Brazil has participation of 70% in the businesses of the company in Latin America. "Brazil is the China of the World agribusiness", he says. Sales in Latin America almost doubled in the first half of this year. In 2007 so far, the sales reached 213 million Euros. In the same period last year, Basf sold 110 million Euros. This increase was mainly due to the recovery of the Brazilian agribusiness. Although the Brazilian producers are still not free from debts, they invested more in technology for the 2007/08 harvest. In Latin America, as well as in Brazil, Basf is in third place in the market share of the pesticides and herbicides segment, behind Syngenta and Bayer. In order to develop its technology, Basf invested 3.15 million Euros (R$ 7.98 million) in the implementation of the lab, which will be first of a Latin American company aimed at environmental studies. With the investment, Basf will increase its capacity of carrying out researches on studies of residues for the purposes of registration both in the United States and in Europe. "The choice of Brazil resulted mainly from the professionalism of those who work in the area of research, which is greatly acknowledged in Germany, and that caused the investment to come to the Country. There is a world acknowledgment of these researchers", he said. According to Dissinger, a global network of research, development and know-how will be created.