By Helga Flores Trejo
Last May, I travelled to Brazil to attend a Bayer organized event in the context of the G20 meeting of the Agricultural Chief Scientists. The event inspired me with an outstanding display of innovations that are bringing decarbonization of agriculture to life – you can learn more about these innovations further in the story about Bayer's Carbon efforts.
During my stay, I visited the Vick Family at their Fazenda Estância in Pirassununga, São Paulo. Their farm exemplifies how regenerative agriculture, bolstered by advanced biotechnology, can revolutionize farming practices to yield a healthier ecosystem overall. The Vick family showcased their ability to significantly enhance soil health in their Fazenda while sustaining impressive productivity, despite difficult weather conditions. Quite a testament to the positive outcomes of practices such as no-till farming, crop rotation, and adoption of cover crops.
During this fascinating stay, carbon capture, and soil health were very much in the spotlight. At the end of the week, as I started my return from Brasilia to Washington D.C., I found myself energized and optimistic for the future. The only challenge ahead of me was to survive the layover of five hours at the Congonhas Airport. What I didn’t anticipate is that as I waited for my connection to Washington D.C., I would have the encounter of my life! A fellow passenger – also waiting for the D.C. flight – happened to be non-other than Professor Lal Rattan. What a fortuitous end of the week! We spent 5 hours exchanging tales about his life, his work, his legacy, the relevance of the research on soil and carbon capture, his upcoming trip to my homeland Mexico, and many other inspiring stories.
From our amazing encounter, there is a sentence from Professor Lal that will stay with me. It beautifully captures the importance of his work: “Peace is a matter of science.” Indeed, our commitment to advance resilience and innovation in agriculture is nothing less than that.
Helga Flores Trejo
Vice President
Head International &
Multilateral Affairs, Bayer