Bayer renews sustainable soy commitment

12-Jan-2018 - Last updated on 12-Jan-2018 at 14:20 GMT

Agrifood giant Bayer has renewed its 2015 co-operation with the Round Table on Responsible Soy Association (RTRS), which saw it mobilise farmers and the use of certified soy in its supply chain.

Since the supplier began working with RTRS, it has kickstarted the certification process with several large cooperatives in Brazil and promoted the RTRS.

RTRS certification ensures that soy, both as a raw material and a by-product, is environmentally compatible, socially adequate and economically viable, it said.

Soy is the fastest growing crop in the world, although most of it is used for animal feed by the meat and dairy industries.

Head of business affairs and communications at Bayer’s crop science division Bernd Naaf said Bayer wanted to contribute to a production of soy which is environmentally, economically and socially responsible.

“Certification is one important tool to this end, and we encourage farmers to follow standards like RTRS,” he said.

RTRS’s executive director Marcelo Visconti said that, by valuing the certification of crops, Bayer demonstrated it understands the value of more sustainable activities.

“Bayer is clearly investing in an environmentally and socially responsible agriculture in the broadest sense,” Visconti added. “These important and concrete actions demonstrate Bayer’s commitment to responsible production and to the RTRS, of which it is a member.”

Another aspect of the partnership is promoting uptake of certified responsible soy among food manufacturers, thus boosting the purchase of RTRS credits.

These credits, which can be sold on the open market, are considered instrumental to incentivising sustainable soy production. Bayer, which generated sales of €34.9 billion in 2016, buys credits for the soy derivatives it uses in its production processes.

RTRS president Marina Engels told our sister site FeedNavigator, there are a range of advantages in becoming RTRS-certified.

The global population is on track to hit nine billion by 2050 yet the world has a finite amount of resources it can devote to food production.

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