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Bianchini halts Brazilian plant as floods struck, 100,000 lots of soy at threat

Familyowned Brazilian soy crusher and soy by-products exporter Bianchini was required to halt operations at its Canoas plant in Rio Grande do Sul state in the middle of extreme flooding, Corporate Director Gustavo Bianchini informed on Friday.

The company makes soymeal and soyoil and likewise produces biodiesel for sale on the domestic market.

Bianchini validated an adjacent storage facility with 100,000 lots of soybeans was likewise flooded at the company's Canoas centers, which are close to the Sinos river and north of state capital Porto Alegre.

It is unclear how much item can be conserved from the storage facility due to the fact that waters have not boil down yet, Bianchini stated. He described flooding triggered the grain to swell up inside the storage center, making the beans double in size when the water was at its highest.

Speaking by telephone, Bianchini validated the credibility of an image circulating on social networks revealing soybeans pouring through the center's breaking walls.

Bianchini said the company's Rio Grande soy squashing plant and a neighboring port terminal in the south of the state were running usually, even as weather condition forecasters predict heavy showers for the region in coming days. He included that 70-80% of all soymeal exported out of Rio Grande do Sul travels through Bianchini's Rio Grande terminal.

Earlier on Friday, Bunge said it halted a soy crusher in Rio Grande for fear of flooding. Bunge's plant neighbors Bianchini's, the executive said.

As rains fail to let up, more problems wait for soy farmers, traders and processors in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil's 2nd greatest soy manufacturer after Mato Grosso state.

All business are suffering due to the fact that roadways are blocked and excess moisture impedes farmers from reaping what's left of the soy in the fields, Bianchini said.

Bianchini's management prepares to resume production at the Canoas plant when waters decline. Presently, the water is approximated to be in between 30 cm and 70 cm high, Bianchini said.

Carlos Cogo, a grains expert, said soy in flooded warehouses will likely be lost or have to be reclassified as low quality.

Bianchini said its losses would have been higher if the company's 2 Canoas warehouses were complete. They can hold approximately 400,000 loads, he stated.

The business's Canoas plant employs about 350 individuals and 80%. of the workforce resides in the area. Some went to. shelters as their homes were likewise entirely inundated,. Bianchini said.

The plant has the capacity to procedure 2,500 lots of soybeans. each day and sends out soymeal by barge to be exported out of Rio. Grande port.

Bianchini's Rio Grande unit squashes 3,400 heaps each day, the. executive stated.

(source: Reuters)