Brazil cotton gains new rail export route to Port of Santos

Brazil’s expanding cotton frontier has gained a new logistics option for exports. Brado and SLC Agrícola completed the first multimodal operation to move cotton from Maranhão to the Port of Santos, in São Paulo state. The inaugural shipment carried 246.2 metric tons of cotton lint and opened a new corridor for fiber produced in Matopiba, Brazil’s fast-growing agricultural frontier covering parts of Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí and Bahia.

The cargo traveled by train from Davinópolis, in Maranhão, to Sumaré, in São Paulo. From there, it was moved by truck to the Port of Santos, where it was loaded for shipment to Southeast Asia.

New shipments are expected over the coming months as the companies gradually consolidate the operation.

The initiative strengthens a partnership built over the past six years. Since 2020, Brado and SLC Agrícola have worked together to move cotton exports from Mato Grosso, Brazil’s leading cotton-producing state. The cooperation has helped develop integrated logistics solutions and improve operations over time.

The chart below shows monthly cotton export volumes recorded on the DataLiner platform:

Cotton Exports | H1 2026 | TEUs

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

New logistics alternative

Maranhão’s entry into this logistics corridor comes as Brazil’s cotton geography continues to change.

Over the past two decades, cotton production has expanded beyond traditional growing areas, with Matopiba emerging as one of the most promising regions for growth.

Until now, much of the region’s output had been moved by road to ports in Brazil’s South and Southeast. The new route gives producers an alternative built around the North-South Railway, which runs for more than 2,700 kilometers and forms the longest active rail network in Brazil.

The decision to use the Port of Santos was also strategic. As the largest port complex in Latin America, Santos received more than 5,700 vessels over the year. That level of activity ensures a broad range of maritime services and greater container availability from shipping lines, helping speed up shipments and improve the competitiveness of Brazilian cotton in international markets.

“As production advances into new regions, logistics must follow with solutions that provide scale, predictability and efficiency,” said Mayra Antunes Coelho, sales executive at Brado.

“This operation is an important step in that process, connecting an expanding production area to one of the country’s main export channels. The entire transport operation is carried out with detailed planning, continuous monitoring and specific procedures to preserve cargo quality throughout the journey,” she said.

One of Brazil’s largest agricultural commodity producers, SLC Agrícola has grown cotton since 1998. The fiber is used mainly by the textile industry and has a strong presence in international markets, making logistics a key factor in the competitiveness of Brazilian cotton.

“This operation shows our ongoing search for solutions that increase efficiency, safety and competitiveness across the logistics chain,” said Thiago Sanches, logistics coordinator at SLC Agrícola.

“Assessing this new export alternative expands the possibilities for integration between transport modes and generates important lessons for the development of future operations. With this, we move forward in our goal of building increasingly strategic, predictable and sustainable logistics, connecting planning, innovation, technology and execution excellence,” he said.

Brazil strengthens global cotton position

The opening of new logistics corridors comes as Brazilian cotton production continues to grow.

According to data from Brazil’s Secretariat of Foreign Trade, or Secex, the country exported more than 3 million metric tons of cotton in 2025, up 9.1% from the previous year.

Brazilian cotton now accounts for 30.7% of global cotton imports, supported by productivity gains in the field, the expansion of planted areas and stronger international demand.

According to Brazil’s national food supply and statistics agency, Conab, the area planted with cotton has more than doubled over the past 20 years and now exceeds 2 million hectares.

A significant share of that growth has taken place in Matopiba, where available land and favorable production conditions have turned the region into one of Brazil’s main agricultural frontiers.

“In this context, expanding export logistics alternatives is becoming increasingly strategic to sustain production growth and ensure greater competitiveness for Brazilian cotton in international markets,” Brado’s Coelho said.

Source: Brado 

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