German chemical and biotech giant BASF has teamed up with international civil society organisation Solidaridad to promote sustainable farming practices on soyabean farms in Brazil.
Involving a network of small to mid-sized soyabean farmers in Brazil, the first phase of the project started in January and was set to run for a year, BASF said on 3 April.
Although soyabean production played a crucial role in the global food and feed industry, its expansion had raised concerns about the loss of biodiversity in key regions, including Brazil, the world’s leading soyabean producer, the company said.
Against this backdrop, the partners said they wanted to address these challenges and drive positive change.
“What is new about this project is the multi-stakeholder co-creation approach. We want to jointly develop metrics and practices to favour the creation of a biodiverse environment that are accepted and achievable by all stakeholders – farmers, NGOs, the industry and other experts,” Sergi Vizoso-Sansano, senior vice president BASF Agricultural Solutions Latin America, said.
BASF said the number of farms, metrics collected and activities carried out would be defined jointly during the project.
“We will support small and medium-sized soyabean farmers with technical assistance to enhance productive resilience and sustainability of the farms,” Rodrigo Castro, country manager of Solidaridad in Brazil, said.
As research had shown that pollinating insects could have a positive impact on soyabean production, pollinators like bees would be a particular focus of the project.
Pollination or cross-pollination could increase yield by up to 12% by improving the seed set, or the number of seeds a plant produces per soyabean pod.
In addition, the partnership would develop and test the feasibility of a nature market in Brazil, where farmers are paid to deliver and maintain environmental service projects on their land, BASF said.
The long-term goal would be to create an ecosystem in which farmers are incentivised to deliver nature-positive projects alongside existing agricultural practices.
For example, companies could meet their environmental goals by purchasing nature-positive credits through a market that pays farmers to deliver and maintain environmental projects and practices on their land.
The project would be supported by two organisations: GeoApis, to monitor managed bees and facilitate communication between farmers and beekeepers, and Wheatley Young Partners, to assess the feasibility of a nature-market in Brazil.
