La Candelaria: Soybean 2.0

Two days ago we experienced one of the first frosts of the season. The temperature was at -1 C. With the arrival of the frost, I know that fall is really here and that it is essential to get the crops harvested for the winter.

Field aeration is important for the success of a crop. This can be achieved by working the soil with a plough (which ploughs to a 40 cm depth) or by planting a cover crop that aerates through its root system such as alfalfa (which has a root system 4-5 m deep.) Compaction of the soil is a major problem when seeding, chemical applications and harvesting is done by heavy duty machinery. Loosening up the soil improves the water distribution, breaks up mineral build-ups that create impermeable layers in the soil and improves the effectiveness of chemical applications.

The focus of today's lesson was the soybean. We've been working with the agricultural division which consists of Santiago, Mariano, and Mauricio. Planting depends on the commodity price of the soybean in the year of planting. Since the Argentinian government is not stable and there is not a strong local economy for the soybean, prices depend on the world market.

The soybean is planted in two seasons referred to as the first harvest and second harvest soy. First harvest seedings vary from year to year and are dependent on the climate and soil conditions of different plots at the time of seeding. Different varieties are used to respond to different conditions. Changes in seed result in different time requirements for germination and maturation.

The critical period for first harvest soybeans is the flowering stage. The soy plant is strongest when it has ample water access. When it experiences dry or drought conditions, the plant will abort flowers and thereby lose seedpods. Studying the rainfall patterns for the last thirty years at La Calanderia, it is known that December 15 - January 15 is a high temperature dry season. So the soy plants are planted so that the flowering date ( +/- 15 days) for the specific variety being used doesn't fall within this window of time.

For similar purposes, the second harvest soybeans are planted in December so that their flowering period occurs in February.

It is also important to recognize that short cylce plants are generally smaller, which therefore have less seeds per plant and longer cylce plants are generally bigger, and therefore have more seeds per plant. This is why 400,000 seeds are planted per hectare for short cylce varieties and only 350,000 seeds need to be planted per hectore for long cylce varieties to receive similar yields for the land being used.

The soybeans used at La Calendaria are all genetically engineered (GE) seeds. Though the soil at La Calendaria is typically depleted of nitrogen and phosphorus, the soybeans do not receive either of these mineral supplements for growth. The seeds are inoculated with a supplement that contains bacteria that improves the nitrogen production of the plants.

When fertilizer used to be cheaper, the administration used to purchase more phosphorus to use during the corn application so that it would last for the soybean crop that would follow the corn crop. By doing one application for both crops, it saved on the labour costs for application and supplemented both crops. Now that phosphorus is more expensive, only the quantities required for the corn crops are applied.

The growth phases of the soybean, as I understand them, are as follows: seeding, germination, flowering (plant is reproductive at the first flower), pollination, seed formation, seed maturation and drying.

Pests that are of concern to the soy plant are catipillars (in Spanish trips, tucuras, oruga bollifera) which eat the leaves of the plant, small spiders which toward the end of the plant life cycle consumes the leaves and the plants nutrients, and the chinca verde and its larvae which also eat the leaves. Pests are worse when the weather has high temperatures and low precipitation.

Leaf rust, a fungus, is the hardest to control and attacks when plants are subject to high temperatures and excessive humidity.

If the crop is going to be sold commercially, which means put to market for processing, more pests can be allowed than if the seeds are to be kept for seeding the following year. The generally acceptable organic material loss of a crop is about 15%. However, when monitoring the pest presence for a plot, it important to distinguish if the organic matter loss has occured slowly over time or over a short period of time - a 15% loss in a week can quickly turn into a 40% loss which is much more worrying.

There are a variety of pest and disease mitigation approaches. Luckily in this part of Argentina the crops aren't subject to many pests and disease becuase of the colder climate. Sometimes in fact the crops don't need an application of insecticide because the plants are strong enough to resist the pest and disease on their own. Otherwise insecticides, fungicides and herbicides are applied.

Applications of these protections are more preventative than curable, which is why there aren't often many pest or disease outbreaks in the crops - each harvest has chemical applications included in its production cost. If there is an outbreak of a pest or disease, the administration needs to evaluate if the market price at the time can support a chemical intervention cost wise. Rarely is this the case. As a result, they crop is just left to finish its growth cycle as is until complete, and then the seeds are harvested with accordingly lower yields than the healthy plots. (The quality of the soybeans are not affected by disease and pests, just the yields of the crop.)

Other technologies being developed include genetically engineering the plants to be toxic to the pests that threaten them. For example, there is a variety of soybean that has been developed to be toxic to the chinca verde and it's larvae.

The Soybean - Argentina

My ultimate goal coming to Argentina was to gain an appreciation for industrial and international agriculture. In my opinion the photo above captures the essence of my ambition well – a soybean filled truck that has just been loaded (with 30,000 kg) to be transported to the port for export. The soybeans were harvested moments earlier by heavy duty industrial machinery from an 80 hectare (200 acre) mono-crop field once the moisture content of the beans were deemed to be dry enough for harvest.

It is one of my favourite photos I have taken so far on this trip for its aesthetic and also its meaning. It is a photo that captures a small moment of the international soybean industry, an industry that is very large, complex and has its share of contention. I would like to take this time to briefly discuss the soybean industry to understand why I am so impressed to be a part of it. (Please note the statistics that follow are approximates sourced from Wikipedia.)

In Canada, consumers have some knowledge of the soybean. In supermarkets, soy milk, tofu, tempeh, bean paste, soy sauce, frozen edamame, soy ice cream, soy cheese, soy meat and a plethora of other soy-based protein replacements have made a huge dent in the food retail industry. Despite the strong presence of soy in today’s grocery markets, it might be interesting for consumers to learn that only a small portion of the soybean production globally is for human consumption – the majority of soybeans are converted into defatted soybean meal which is a significant and cheap source of protein for animal feed today. In fact, it has revolutionized meat production on an industrial scale by making complete protein available to animals for consumption and allowing them to pack on the pounds more quickly.

Despite being a legume native to East Asia, globally, the top producers of the soybean are the US (35%), Brazil (27%), Argentina (19%), China (6%) and India (4%). These five countries account for 90% of the world’s soybean production. In 2011, it was estimated that the US produced 10 million tons of the bean. The top exporters are Brazil (39%), the US (37%) and Argentina (16%) – these three countries total 92% of global exports. The top importers are China (41%), the EU (22%), Japan (6%) and Mexico (6%).

When I analyzed the beef, pork and poultry production globally, it was interesting to see how the soybean production and distribution aligned with the meat production industry. For beef, the top producers as of 2010 are the US (11,789,000 metric tonnes), Brazil (9,300,000 mt), EU (7,920,000 mt), China (5,550,000 mt) and Argentina (2,800,000 mt). Global pig stocks as of 2007 were China (425.6 million), US (61.7 mil), Brazil (35.9 mil) and Germany (27.1 mil). Global poultry stocks as of 2004 were China (3,860 million), US (1,970 mil), Indonesia (1,200 mil), Brazil (1,100 mil) and Mexico (540 mil).

What quickly became evident is that the top meat producers, the US, Brazil, the EU and China are also producing, exporting or importing the majority of the soybean production globally to improve their meat production.

The composition of a dry soybean is 40% protein, 20% oil, 35% carbohydrate and 5% ash. Its oil and protein contents are very valuable. In meat production for example, since corn is primarily composed of carbohydrates and is the primary feed supplement, the protein is very necessary for the animals.

At Los Potros, the estimates on production per hectare of their crops are soybean (3,000 kg), sorghum (7,000 kg) and maize (10,000 kg). Currently the soybean (soja) is being harvested. Approximately 30 – 40 hectares can be harvested per day with one machine, and Los Potros has 573 hectares planted this year – on all three of the properties owned by Establecimiento San Marcos there are 1517 hectares of soybean planted this year. The bean technology was originally purchased from companies that developed plants best suited for the conditions in this area. Los Potros saves some of their seeds every year to replant in the spring. They still need to pay feed to the original company for the continued use of the genetic variety they use on their farms.

Currently, one of the primary contentions about the soybean industry is the prevalence of genetically engineered soybeans. For example, in 1997, 8% of the US soybean industry was based on genetically engineered seed. In 2010 the proportion was up to 93%. In all fairness the US does have a history of combining industrial technology with the soybean – a history of which I was previously unaware. In the 1930s the Ford Motor company invested 1.25 million dollars in research and development of the bean. By 1935 it is claimed that all Ford cars had soy involved in at least one part of their production often in the form of soy plastic. Ford himself, was also instrumental at promoting the development of soy milk, soy ice cream and the use of industrial soy plastics.

Fears associated with genetically engineered commodities include the lack of knowledge consumers have about the implications on human, animal and environmental health in the long run that may result from the rapid genetic alterations of crops; patents on plant technology and seed ownership rights that have resulted from the money that has been invested in research and development; competitive inequalities that result from those that are and are not able to afford the technology; and dependency of certain farmers on the technology for their livelihood.

The debated ethical question about the long term health implications of genetically engineering plants, for example, has proven to be a barrier to entry into the EU market, as many EU countries have much stricter regulations on the use of genetic engineering in their foods.

Engineering includes technology from Monsanto, a multination agriculture biotechnology company, which developed a Roundup Ready soybean variety which withstands the application of their very popular herbicide, Roundup. Other soybeans are inoculated with strains of nitrogen fixing bacteria before planting to allow optimal growth and nitrogen fixation.

The soybean is a legume, which means it fixes nitrogen into the soil via a relationship with bacteria that develop in nodules in its root system. Nitrogen is most often the limiting nutrient that prevents plants from growing optimally, so it is interesting to learn that on industrial levels, farmers are able to use the soybean as a means to maintain healthy nitrogen levels in the soil after they would have been depleted the essential levels by maize and sorghum production.

This brings me to a much debated subject. People concerned with the ethical nature of the industrial food system, where large scale farmers work closely with behemoth multinational agri-food companies to successfully feed the people of the world, worry that the people involved in industrial agriculture are not taking care of their lands properly. I too often find myself on the discerning side of this debate wondering how much the faceless people of the agri-business world care about environmental and human health issues above the profit margins of their businesses. (Also, how much of the actions taken to produce more is rationalized by the need to feed people.)

After meeting the people who are a part of this system, I am convinced that it is not as evil as we suspect it to be, at least not in Argentina – I still have my doubts about the methods used in the US. The people who are making it happen care significantly about the health of their soils as their livelihoods depend on the long term ability of the land to sustain the animals and plants they hope to produce year after year. I genuinely believe that they are working to produce quality crops and beef at a large scale. I can vouch for the quality and civilized farming methods of the cattle for sure.

Also, I am less concerned with the implications of the genetic engineered seeds that are being planted than I was previously, but I maintain my concern about the use of herbicides and pesticides being spread on crops. The widespread use, with 3 -4 sprayings per crop cycle, on vast areas of land does compromise the micro-organisms that would naturally maintain the ecosystems on these lands. Arguably we are not by any means trying to support the natural ecosystems in these areas, nor are there plans to do so in the near future considering the lands being used for agriculture will need to continue their production far into the future to meet global demands. Yet the fact that growth depends heavily on the sun’s energy, rainfall, and weather patterns which are pretty much incontrollable, I believe that persistent suppression of many of the soils micro-organisms and constantly artificially controlling the soils composition will result in agricultural hardships in the future.

I am still torn on my feelings about this subject because I can make and understand the arguments on both sides. A part of me believes in the ingenuity and creativity of humanity to overcome any obstacle, and also questions how near in the future these ‘agricultural hardships’ may arise. If it is not in my lifetime, is it something I should really worry about?

Then there is a side of me that does believe in doing all I can to understand nature’s systems and preserve them for future generations. Or is it for the sake of preservation? Have we inherited the land from our parents or are we borrowing the land from our children? I don’t know. I tend to lean towards we have inherited it from our parents and our children, like we have, will inherit the land from us with the results of all our right and wrong decisions.

Regardless, I am here now, seeing in this moment in history, large quantities of soybean being harvested in Argentina for export to the global market. It is a process that exemplifies technological, mechanical and biological innovation and application. I am happy to be a part of this history and most of all, I am happy to be outdoors growing food.

Estancia Bouvier: A meeting of ranch holders

Last week I was able to observe a meeting of the local Argentinian ranchers. Apparently in Argentina, the government has divided the ranchers of the country into various groups. These groups are supposed to meet regularly at one another's ranches as a way of sharing and policing the activities that are going on at the various properties. A government official, a agricultural scientist, is supposed to participate in these meetings as well as a way of sharing and collecting information to then report back to Buenos Aires. In this way, the cattle industry can quickly and efficiently share and distribute new technologies and information across the country.

Groups are generally supposed consist of 8 - 12 ranching groups, however the meeting group is stil relatively new here and consists of only 3 - 4 groups. The meeting is a day long affair. We met at 8:30 am for introductions and some coffee. We then were given a folder with maps and statistics on production at the ranch, Estancia Bouvier. The manager discussed long term goals as well as past obstacles. For example, Estancia Bouvier is located along the Paraguay River. At first I thought this was a huge advantage for irrigation and drinking water purposes, but was told that in fact it was a huge problem because the river gave thieves easy access to steal cows. When the animals are being stolen at a rate of 2/week, which annually adds up to losses of over $100,000 you have a problem. For this reason, an entire section on the river is not used by the ranch in order to keep the cattle from being stolen.

Interesting statistics for me were the following. The ranch own 52.000 hectares but only uses 47.500 hectares. They have 33 employees - 3 administratin, 19 cattle workers and 11 maintenance people. In the last five years, they have had a pregancy rate of 75% of their herd, from which they experienced a further 20% loss to delivery. This means that on average only 60% of the cows are delivering calves, which is very low. Miscarriage losses of 20% are very high I am told, and business wise, only replicating just over half of your herd doesn't seem very effective.

However, I learned that the reproduction system is much different at Bouvier. There they only have one mating season, from November until April. The purpose I was told is to simplify the process and reduce labour, which it does, however the returns and pregnancy success is much lower.

Other interesting numbers were the weight of meat leaving the farm - in 2006 the statistic was 29.6 kg/ha whereas in 2011 the weight was only 18.5 kg/ha. The total weights leaving the farm in those years were 1.407.017 kg (2006) and 877.969 (2011); this number includes both cows and calves. The last interesting number is the carrying capacity of the land - on average the land required per animal is 2.18 ha. The ranch has approximately 22,000 animals at any one time.

The main topic of conversation for the day was grass. Specifically tangola grass. This grass is a hybrid of tanner grass and pia grass. It contains high nutritional value and replicates itself from plant cuttings rather than seeds. Above you can see one of these plants at one month old.


Today was the first day that I really got down and examinted the grasses in the fields. The pastures contain an abundance of variety and accordingly, a rancher needs to be able to identify which grasses are supporting and which are hindering his success. Above is a native legume species that fixes nitrogen into the soil but has little greenery content for consumption by the animals.



The scientist that accompanied us for the day is an expert on grasses in Paraguay and the Northern region of Argentina. He spoke freely of the replanting initiatives that were taking place in ranches in his area of expertise and how to go about doing the replantings economically. First, you have to identify if your land is high-land or low-land - though Formosa seems completely flat, after being here for a few weeks I have started to appreciate the differences in water content in the soil and vegetation in depressed areas and elevated areas. It is vital to grow the right grass in the right conditions, or your are wasting your time and money. For this reason, we examined maps of Bouvier that provided inventories of the soil types, elevation conditions and moisture content of the ranch.


Here you can clearly see the difference between the front field and the back field in color and consistency. The grass in the foreground is pangola (different than tangola). When the tractors tilled the soil to plant seed, it provided an opportunity for the pangola already in the field to proliferate. The back field is untilled and still natural grasses.


Part of the tour included visiting Salvacion to the place where the tangola for Bouvier was collected. Tangola needs low land and higher water content. It is a competitive plant and will grow as a mat to cover the ground and outshade all other plants, or if it is growing where other plants are already established it will grow vertically to compete for the sun.


Other than a different breeding regime, it was neat to learn that Bouvier also supplements the diets of their animals differently. In fact, they buy cotton seed from the many cotton producers in teh region, and feed the seed to the calves on these nylon feeding troughs. The seed is bought in bulk at $125 US/tonne, but the seed needs to be picked up and bagged by Bouvier. At our farm, we supplement the calves diet by saving planted fields for them when they are first weaned from their mothers. This provides higher nutrition to the animals than putting them into natural grass pastures.