Sustainability—More Than a Commitment for Brazil
In 2008, Brazil ranked as one of the world’s top four emitters of greenhouse gases, along with China, the United States and Indonesia. Environmental threats have ultimately impacted many Brazilians’ way of life. Very little of the country’s tap water is drinkable and in Sao Paulo, Brazil, drivers must leave their cars at home one day per week as part of the traffic control program.
Brazil also accounts for 40 percent of rainforest deforestation and hosts two biodiversity hotspots. A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region with a significant reservoir of biodiversity threatened with destruction.
On Dec. 5, 2008, Brazil’s Environment Minister Carlos Minc called for a reduction in the annual rate of deforestation—from 7,300 square miles to 1,900 square miles by 2017.
“This is an aggressive goal,” Rodrigo Almeida, Monsanto Brazil corporate affairs director, said. “However it is necessary due to the need to reduce deforestation.”
Biotech could be a part of the solution.
“To meet [Monsanto’s goal of doubling the fiscal 2007 gross profit by 2012], we do not have to tear down rainforests to put more acres into production,” Hugh Grant, Monsanto CEO, said. “If Brazil, India and Mexico corn yields could be brought to 100 bushels per acre--two thirds the level of U.S. corn yields--we could produce another 4 billion bushels of corn annually, the equivalent of the world’s total corn exports in 2007. Our focus as a company is to reduce the complexity of technology into the simple delivery mechanism of the seed.”
Almeida agrees.
“Promise lies in the fact that biotech allows farmers to produce more with less, meaning that less land and other resources are required,” Almeida said. “Monsanto Brazil is responding to the misconception that our products are part of the problem when in fact they are part of the solution. Our technologies are helping farmers to avoid deforestation by increasing their productivity in many ways. For example, by practicing no-till, the soil has become more fertile and yield increases. Our Roundup Ready soybean is helping farmers to increase their productivity which means more soy with the same area of land.”
In July 2006, Brazil’s soy industry agreed not to trade soybeans produced in deforested areas. Carlo Lovatelli, director of soy industry association Abiove said soy is no longer a huge threat to the Amazon. A study developed by environmental groups and members of the soy industry found that 12 of 630 sample areas deforested since July 2006 were planted with soy—totalling about .88 percent of 390,000 acres.
In 2009, Monsanto was invited to be part of the Round Table on Responsible Soy Association, which allows the company to work with stakeholders like soy producers, civil society, and industry and trade partners to develop more environmentally friendly business practices.An area of concern is the Cerrado—a major hotspot plagued with illegal deforestation—primarily by farmers—to create more arable land for cattle and soybean production.
In November 2008, Monsanto partnered with Conservation International (CI) in Brazil to conserve biodiversity and natural habitat in Brazil’s Cerrado and Atlantic Forest. Both areas have lost more than 75 percent of their original vegetation.
“This is not just a Monsanto project that impacts our bottom line, but it reflects a real need that exists in Brazil and one that has global implications,” Gabriela Burian, Monsanto Brazil sustainability lead, said. “The idea is to show our employees that the world has changed. We have to minimize natural resources, and socio-environmental responsibility is currently a need for our business, not simply added value.”
Under the partnership, Monsanto Brazil has developed a program that educates farmers near Parque Nacional das Emas on territory laws, techniques for sustainable farming and cattle breeding, and weed management techniques to ensure biodiversity.
The Brazil team has also distributed educational materials to farmers in the south of Brazil and the Cerrado.
“These materials explain how farmers should comply with environmental laws in their regions,” Burian said. “We have been consulting with the community, universities, and NGOs to gather suggestions to develop a kind of environmental bible.”
So far, these efforts have received a positive response from both internal and external stakeholders, but not everyone is onboard.
Marcelo Duarte, executive director of the Aprosoja (Association of Soybean Farmers in English) in Mato Grasso, is in favor of converting pasture into cropland. In 2008, he said, “There are 62 million acres of cattle farms in the state and some of this land can be converted for soybean and other agricultural products.”
However, Monsanto hopes engaging key groups in conversations about conservation, in addition to partnerships with organizations like CI, encourage everyone to move in one direction.
“NGOs like CI are conducting discussions with the government on environmental services,” Flavio Asch, Monsanto Brazil regional supply chain manager, said. “Monsanto’s field sales group is working with both parties to build a bridge between NGOs and farmers. Hopefully, this conversation and these relationships will grow to help all parties with environmental conservations.”
Burian said Monsanto sustainable team also develops articles, for popular press, to encourage others to address conservation.
“Many blame agriculture for the destruction of the Amazon and other biodiversity hotspots in Brazil,” she said. “Soybean farming is depicted as a corrosive action that is the cause of the destruction. However, through the efforts of Monsanto and our partners we hope to increase awareness and improve the environment. We hope to show the world that we are in fact a part of the solution.”
