Brazil's grain logistics hit record volumes amid storage shortfall

Logistics firm VLI reported moving a record 12.4 million tonnes of grains and feed in the first half of 2026, a 7.9% increase over the same period in 2025. The company highlighted a historic second‑quarter volume of 7.9 million tonnes, driven by its three main corridors – the North corridor linking Matopiba and the Center‑West to São Luís, the East corridor serving Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo, and the Southeast corridor connecting the Center‑West to the Port of Santos. VLI’s director of Commercial, Projects and Strategic Planning, Carolina Hernandez, said the results reinforce the firm’s role as a strategic partner for Brazil’s agribusiness supply chains.

Meanwhile, Brazil’s overall grain harvest is set to reach a record 360.1 million tonnes in the 2025/26 cycle, but storage facilities can accommodate only 62.9% of that volume – about 226.5 million tonnes – leaving a deficit of roughly 133.6 million tonnes, the largest ever recorded. The shortfall, cited by the National Supply Company (Conab), threatens producers who lack adequate silos and could force them to sell crops immediately after harvest, increasing financial risk. Industry analysts point to rapid expansion in the Cerrado and Matopiba regions without matching infrastructure growth as a key cause of the bottleneck.