Browse Data and Analysis

South Africa boasts one of Africa's most developed and diverse economies, supported by a robust commercial sector and sophisticated distribution networks.

Brazil’s soybean sector is projected to grow in 2025/26, with post revising the total projected planted area to 49.1 million hectares and estimated production reaching 176 million metric tons in 2026, driven by favorable weather and technological advances.

Brazil will host the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30), to take place in Belém, Pará, from November 10-21, 2025.

In 2024, Southern Africa faced a severe drought, leading to a significant decline in corn and soybean production, which caused rising food inflation and economic challenges.

Brazil presents growth potential for consumer oriented products, especially among the 40 million high-income consumers who are open to new, quality imports, while the country's robust food processing sector offers significant prospects for inputs of U.S. commodities and ingredients.

Brazil and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) are in the initial stages of potentially developing a dedicated soybean supply chain tailored to meet Chinese sustainability and quality standards.

The FAIRS Annual Country Report provides a comprehensive summary of the rules and regulations governing the import of food and agricultural products to South Africa.

This report has been updated to include the latest information relevant to exporting to South Africa. The Food and Agricultural Import Regulation and Standards (FAIRS) Certificate Report provides a comprehensive list of the main certificates required for exporting plants, animals, and animal products to South Africa.

The South African Department of Agriculture (DoA) reported several new positive cases of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in cattle in the KwaZulu Natal, Gauteng, and Mpumalanga provinces in April 2025. Following the announcement of the FMD outbreak, China suspended imports of cloven-hoofed animals and related products from South Africa.

Established in 2006, Brazil’s Soy Moratorium bans the sale of soybeans grown on land deforested in the Amazon biome after July 2008, significantly reducing deforestation linked to soy expansion.

Major bulk commodities, as a share of total U.S. agricultural exports, have risen and fallen dramatically since 2020. Beyond short-term price volatilities that have largely driven these developments, changes to the largest overseas market and an increasingly competitive landscape also affect the prospect for major U.S. bulk exports.

On May 16, 2025, Brazil, the world’s largest chicken meat exporter, reported its first case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in a commercial plant. The Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock has initiated measures to resolve the case, including a sanitary void period as of May 22nd for 28 days.