Soy truck lines stretch 25 km near Pará port as Brazil harvest advances

A line of soybean trucks stretching more than 25 kilometers (15 miles) has formed along the BR-163 highway en route to the port of Miritituba in Pará state, part of Brazil’s fast-growing Arc of the North export corridor, farming leaders said on Monday, Feb. 23.

The bottleneck was reported by a delegation representing 20 rural unions and the Mato Grosso Agriculture and Livestock Federation (Famato), which conducted a technical visit to Miritituba.

Famato President Vilmondes Tomain said the situation highlights the urgent need to expand port capacity in the region.

“It makes no sense to face a massive line of trucks waiting for screening and unloading,” Tomain said in a statement. He urged federal and state authorities in Mato Grosso and Pará to coordinate efforts and called on Brazil’s Agriculture and Transport ministries to assess the situation firsthand and develop solutions.

According to Famato, truck drivers have reported a lack of basic support infrastructure, including restrooms and service points, as well as shortcomings in cargo screening and traffic management.

Data from Brazil’s National Waterway Transportation Agency (Antaq) show cargo throughput via the Arc of the North rose 10.33% in 2025 to 163.3 million metric tons, outpacing the national average growth rate of 6.1%.

Soybeans accounted for nearly 30% of total volumes handled in the region’s ports, reaching 48.6 million tons, up 19.24% year over year. Corn shipments also increased, rising 6.26% to 34.4 million tons.

The congestion could worsen in the coming weeks as Brazil’s soybean harvest progresses.

As of Feb. 20, soybean harvesting in Mato Grosso — Brazil’s largest producing state — had reached 65.75% of planted area, compared with 66.16% at the same time last year, according to the Mato Grosso Institute of Agricultural Economics (Imea). Nationwide, harvest progress stood at 30%, versus 39% a year earlier, consultancy AgRural said.

Brazil’s 2025/26 soybean crop in Mato Grosso is estimated at 49.9 million tons, down 2.8% from the previous season, according to government supply agency Conab. National production is forecast at 178 million tons, up 3.8% from last year.

Fonte: Globo Rural

Sharing is caring!