Syngenta is making strong progress with The Good Growth Plan in increasing crop yields while using precious resources more efficiently, safely, and sustainably. This is demonstrated by the program’s fourth-year results, published today.
The Good Growth Plan, which consists of six commitments to support sustainable growth in agricultural production and the development of rural communities – sets ambitious targets for delivery by 2020. To achieve these goals, farmers are working with Syngenta field experts to share know-how and trial new solutions on over 1,400 reference farms, across 22 crops, in 41 countries.
In 2017, reference farms showed an average 10.9 percent increase in output per hectare, compared with the 2014 baseline. This was almost 50 percent higher than the increase achieved on the benchmark farms used for comparison. Smallholder reference farms are showing particularly strong increases in land productivity – up 21.6 percent compared with 5.1 percent for their benchmark counterparts.
By improving crop yields per hectare, the majority of farms used pesticides, fertilizers, and other inputs more efficiently in 2017. Pesticide efficiency – measuring the amount applied per kilogram of crop produced – has improved by 14.2 percent since 2014 on reference farms. This is almost three times the improvement on benchmark farms.
Analysis of greenhouse gas (GHG) footprints from the reference farms shows a 14 percent reduction in GHG emissions per unit produced since 2014.
Syngenta Chief Executive Officer, Erik Fyrwald, said: “More than ever we depend on farmers to sustainably increase their production, ensuring the supply of safe and affordable food while minimizing the impact that agriculture has on the environment. The Good Growth Plan is central to this. It puts sustainability center stage in the way we do business, and aligns closely with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
“We have achieved a great deal in the last four years but we must do more. We will keep improving The Good Growth Plan to go beyond the current model of agriculture and build what we learn into our commercial offer. We’re also building a body of evidence that it delivers real, measurable value for growers and society at large. The data and insights that we are gaining and sharing are fueling a growing number of partnerships – with governments, academia, NGOs, and businesses. These add further value to our efforts and guide the continuing evolution and development of The Good Growth Plan itself.”
