46  / SEEDWORLD.COM  INTERNATIONAL EDITION 2026
WHEN YOU ASK a plant breeder what sustainability looks 
like, the answer increasingly comes down to traits. Traits for 
tougher weather, more efficient water use and stronger plants 
that rely less on chemical inputs. Yet sustainability doesn’t stop 
in the field. It also depends on how seed companies run their 
operations, from research sites to supply chains, and how they 
translate innovation into measurable impact for farmers and the 
planet.
Turning Collaboration into Action
What makes these efforts particularly powerful is that 
they’re not happening in isolation. Through the International 
Seed Federation Environmental and Social Responsibility 
Coordination Group (ESR-CG), leading seed companies are 
aligning on shared priorities, pooling knowledge and present­
ing a unified voice on cross-industry sustainability topics. This 
association-driven collaboration reflects a collective mindset: 
being stronger together, amplifying impact and embedding 
sustainability across the sector, from breeding strategies to busi­
ness practices.
Seed World Europe spoke with four leaders — Cristiane 
Lourenço, director of global sustainability and smallholder farm­
ers at Bayer; Eduard Fitó, president of Semillas Fitó; José Ré, 
sustainable ag science advisor for RiceTec; and Jason Allerding, 
global head of HSE, sustainability and risk management for 
seeds at Syngenta — to explore how companies are using sci­
ence, technology and culture to make agriculture more produc­
tive and more responsible.
Breeding for a Changing Planet
At Bayer, breeding for sustainability means tackling complex­
ity on multiple fronts. “It takes a broad range of traits to tackle 
the challenges facing farmers,” says Lourenço. “Yield potential, 
climate resilience, pest resistance and nutritional value — while 
reducing fertilizer and input needs — all of it matters.”
New technologies are expanding what breeders can do. 
Biotechnology, genome editing and digital prediction tools allow 
teams to select more precisely and faster than ever. “The goal,” 
Lourenço explains, “is to produce more while restoring more.” 
That means crops that better resist drought and disease, hybrids 
that use nitrogen more efficiently and varieties that protect soil 
through shorter growth cycles or deeper roots.
At RiceTec, sustainability has long been part of the com­
pany’s foundation. “It’s embedded in our history,” says Ré. 
“From the start, we were breeding hybrids that could thrive in 
direct-seeded systems — that was sustainability before the word 
became mainstream.”
Ré adds that those early decisions shaped the company’s 
direction. “We built disease tolerance, strong roots and seed 
vigor into our hybrids long before climate resilience became a 
buzzword.” Today, those traits are helping farmers transition to 
direct seeded rice (DSR), a system that reduces water use, meth­
ane emissions and labor.
Scientific validation has followed. Studies from University of 
California Davis, University of Arkansas and the USDA show that 
RiceTec hybrids emit less methane under both traditional and 
water-saving systems. When measured as yield-scaled global 
BALANCING PRODUCTIVITY 
AND THE PLANET
Inside the tools and strategies shaping a more 
climate-smart seed sector. 
By Marcel Bruins, Seed World Europe Editorial Director

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