ISF engages with the Brazilian seed sector

For its March meetings, the Board of Directors of the International Seed Federation headed to Brazil, first stopping in Brasilia to meet with the Ministerio da Agricultura together with representatives from Associa??o Brasileira de Sementes e Mudas - ABRASEM and Seed Association of the Americas (SAA) , and to visit seed companies just outside the capital in the state of Goiás, before holdings its meetings in S?o Paulo.

In Goiás, ISF had the chance to visit SLC Agrícola SLC Sementes , a producer of soybeans, cotton and corn seeds, as well as raising cattle and working on crop-livestock integration. During the visit, ISF members learned how the company practices no-till, double cropping to increase productivity without increasing land use or conversion, and implementing a 'third harvest' using an Integrated Crop-Livestock (ICL) system. ICL is a production strategy that integrates practices for annual crops and livestock within the same spaces, thereby generating an increasingly stable environment regarding physical, chemical and biological characteristics. This initiative contributes to economic and environmental sustainability in operations and, at the same time, introduces organic materials into the soil through the planting of pastureland.?

ISF also visited a family-owned agriculture and seed company, Wehrmann Agrícola and Dois Marcos Sementes LTDA , which produces soybean and corn seeds, along with potatoes, garlic, onions, carrots, and beets. They also own a soybean and maize plant breeding company, Inova Genética LTDA , which released its first maize hybrids in 2020 and its first soybean cultivars in 2021.

"It was fascinating to visit these companies and learn how improved seeds have significantly contributed to the productivity increases in the farms over the last few decades," shared ISF 2nd Vice-President and President of the Argentinian Seed Association and Semillas Basso , Lorena Basso . "This is inspiring for us who work in different parts of the world producing seeds that increase yields while optimizing scarce resources like land and water," she added.

Engaging with an 'agricultural powerhouse'

Representatives from the three associations were then invited to meet with the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, Carlos Fávaro, at his office in Brasilia. At the meeting, Abrasem President Ronaldo Troncha handed the minister a joint letter from the three associations, presenting concrete proposals for the legislation on seed and seedling production, which aim to encourage more innovation in #plantbreeding, advance the defense of intellectual property, and develop phytosanitary measures.

Minister Fávaro shared (in Portuguese): "We will give full support to help producers and promote advances in the seed sector. We also need to guarantee intellectual property and respect for science." (Read the press release from the ministry below.)

In a separate meeting with President of the Senate Agricultural Caucus, Mr. Alan Rick, the delegation asked the President to support gene editing regulations, which ensures that Brazilian farmers have access to the newest plant breeding innovations and allows them to play a significant role in the global grain trade.

Later, in a meeting organized by ABRASEM, the delegation also met Leandro Vieira Astarita,?President of CTNBIO, the Brazilian National Technical Commission on Biosafety, facilitating a deeper understanding of Brazil's support of plant breeding innovation.

According to ISF Secretary General Michael Keller , "Brazil is an agricultural powerhouse and is set to play an even bigger role in the global stage this year as president of the G20 and in 2025 as host of the UN climate change conference, COP30. We are grateful that we could engage with the authorities, with the national seed association, ABRASEM, and seed companies while we were in Brazil."

See photos of the visit on Flickr.

#SeedIsLife