Rabobank sees growing coffee crop in Brazil, more sugarcane crushing

SAO PAULO, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Brazilian coffee output will grow at least 8% next year to reach 68.5 million 60-kg bags, as the agricultural powerhouse sees a recovery in its plantations after a smaller-than-expected crop this year, according to a Rabobank forecast issued on Wednesday.

The upbeat estimate comes as healthy rainfall soaked coffee farms in Brazil's main producing regions, Rabobank analyst Guilherme Morya told journalists in a webcast.

Brazil is the world's top coffee exporter and producer, followed by Vietnam and Colombia.

Growing production is mostly expected for higher-end arabica beans, which account for most of the country's coffee harvest, following lower-than-expected arabica yields this year due to adverse weather, said Morya.

He also pointed out that drier weather in December and January might affect the forecast.

Brazil's coffee farmers are expected to produce 63.2 million bags this year, divided between 40.1 million bags of arabica and 23.1 million bags of robusta, used largely to make instant coffee blends.

Morya added that coffee exports next year are expected to reach between 42-43 million bags, up from 40 million bags this year, while domestic consumption next year is also seen growing by about 500,000 bags, or about 2% growth.

Rabobank added that it expects Brazilian sugarcane crushing in the country's south-central region to total 575 million tonnes in the 2023/2024 harvest, compared with 540 million tonnes forecast for the 2022/2023 cycle.

The 6.5% expected growth in sugarcane crushing is attributed to productivity gains, according to Radobank.

Total sugarcane production in south-central Brazil is estimated at 35 million tonnes in 2023/2024, compared with output of 32.5 million tonnes in the current season. (Reporting by Roberto Samora; Editing by David Alire Garcia and Jonathan Oatis)