Crop production in Bolivia has fallen for the second year in a row due to drought

The Bolivian Association of Oil and Wheat Producers (Anapo) recently reported that total production of soybeans, corn, sorghum, sunflowers, wheat and chia seeds has declined for the second year in a row, to about 4.524 million tonnes, down 5 per cent from last year and 11 per cent from the year before, as planting activities have been affected by dry weather.
The Bolivian Association of Oil and Wheat Producers (Anapo) recently reported that total production of soybeans, corn, sorghum, sunflowers, wheat and chia seeds has declined for the second year in a row, to about 4.524 million tonnes, down 5 per cent from last year and 11 per cent from the year before, as planting activities have been affected by dry weather.
Fidel Flores, president of Anapo, noted that total grain production this year has generated at least $1.8 billion in financial flows, a 12 percent increase over 2021, Bolivian newspaper La Opinion reported on December 15.

Soyabeans are the most productive of the grains this year, with a total output of 3.075m tonnes, down 4 per cent from last year, according to Anapo. The average soybean yield dropped from 2.3 metric tons per hectare last year to 2.04 metric tons per hectare this year due to drought in summer and winter.

This year, wheat production has seen the biggest year-on-year drop of 44%, with an average yield of 0.87 metric tons per hectare and a total yield of 103,000 tons. This was followed by maize, down 28% to 453,000 tonnes, with average yields falling from 4 tonnes/ha in 2021 to 2.82 tonnes/ha this year. Sunflowers saw the third largest drop, at 16 percent. The average yield of sunflowers dropped from 1.32 metric tons per hectare last year to 1.04 metric tons per hectare this year due to the effects of drought and cold, with total output of 173,000 metric tons this year.

Although the total production of this year's crop was lower, chia seed production increased significantly, up 68% from last year to 4800 tonnes. The average yield increased from 0.14 tonnes per hectare to 0.24 tonnes per hectare, but was still lower than the previous year's 0.53 tonnes per hectare. In addition, total sorghum production this year is up 29 percent from last year to 712,000 tons, but down 100 percent from the year before. The average sorghum yield this year is 1.59 metric tons per hectare, but has yet to recover from 2.93 metric tons per hectare last year.