July 1, 2020

 

Syngenta Group unveils Good Growth Plan

 

 

The Syngenta Group is launching its Good Growth Plan in response to climate change and biodiversity loss to support agriculture's recovery from the economic and social effects of the COVID-19 crisis, Successful Farming reported.

 

According to an Ipsos MORI survey, 72% of large-scale farmers in the US, France, China, Brazil, India, and across Africa worry about how climate change will impact crop yields, animal health, and their ability to do business over the next five years.

 

Farmers everywhere have also had to deal with unparalleled upheaval because of the COVID-19 pandemic, added Syngenta Group officials. A separate survey of European farmers found 46% said their businesses had been significantly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. However, 53% said climate change was still the immediate priority and 63% agreed climate change would have a greater impact on their business than COVID-19 over the next five years.

 

The new Good Growth Plan includes new commitments to reduce agriculture's carbon footprint and to help farmers deal with the extreme weather patterns caused by climate change, say Syngenta Group officials.

 

"Since its launch, the Good Growth Plan's principles and priorities have become deeply embedded in the way we do business at Syngenta," says Erik Fyrwald, Syngenta Group CEO. The plan was of course, just the start.

 

"The coronavirus pandemic has revealed the fragility of the agriculture ecosystem," he adds. "Like a pandemic, climate change is an inevitable threat that we must address before it is too late. As the economy and agriculture begin to build back with the gradual easing of the COVID-19 restrictions, we need to support a recovery for farmers that puts the fight against climate change and biodiversity loss at its core."

 

The survey by Ipsos MORI for Syngenta Group found more than four in five farmers surveyed believed climate change has had at least some impact on their ability to grow food and most (59%) believed reducing greenhouse gas emissions would make their farms more financially stable or competitive.

 

Syngenta Group officials say the firm has achieved or exceeded all the targets from the original Good Growth Plan launched in 2013, including bringing more than 14 million hectares (34.594 million acres) of farmland back from the brink of degradation and enhancing biodiversity on more than eight million hectares (19.768 million acres) of farmland.

 

Under the new Good Growth Plan, Syngenta Group is committed to invest US$2 billion in sustainable agriculture by 2025 and to deliver two technological breakthroughs to market each year. The specific commitments in the new plan are divided into four areas: accelerate innovation for farmers and nature; strive for carbon-neutral agriculture; help people stay safe and healthy; and partner for impact.

 

This includes a commitment to reduce the carbon intensity of its operations by 50% by 2030 to support the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change. Syngenta's commitment has been validated and endorsed by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). Syngenta Group also recently signed up to SBTi's commitment to prevent a global temperature rise of over 1.5°F.

 

"When we speak to farmers, we see they are the first to be harmed by climate change and biodiversity loss," says Alexandra Brand, chief sustainability officer at Syngenta Group. "Now, the COVID-19 restrictions could also have long-lasting effects on the food and agriculture sector. That's why the significant levels of investment in innovation that you see in the new Good Growth Plan are needed to fight climate change and provide for a food system working in harmony with nature."

 

An already established partnership with The Nature Conservancy announced in October 2019 on the Reverte project in Brazil aims to regenerate one million hectares of degraded farmland over the next five years.

 

"Climate change and biodiversity loss, coupled with growing demand for food, are putting increasing pressures on the planet and eroding the productivity and resilience of farms, ranches, and fisheries around the world," says Jennifer Morris, CEO at The Nature Conservancy. "The impacts of COVID-19 make addressing these challenges even more urgent. Reversing these troubling realities will require working across sectors for smart, scalable solutions that ensure a future where people and nature thrive. TNC recognises the role producers around the world have in building solutions and is pleased to collaborate with Syngenta Group on the ambitious pursuit of a food system that works in partnership with nature."