The consolidated and the innovative in the world of bioinputs

The use of bioinputs in Brazil has been around for over 70 years. However, previously, these products had other names, such as inoculants and biodefenses. Consequently, this story can be told from the foundation represented by this “consolidated” of more than seven decades on which a more recent “innovative” perspective is based. Together, past and present, they point to a future in which biological inputs are increasingly essential tools for productive and sustainable agriculture. And soy is at the center of this story.

The “consolidation” in bioinputs in Brazil is responsible for success stories, such as inoculants with nitrogen-fixing bacteria in soybean crops, which have placed the country as a world leader in the benefits of this symbiosis. In the 1950s and 1960s, Brazilian researchers selected soil bacteria (rhizobia) with a high capacity for biological nitrogen fixation in soybean varieties and local climate, humidity and relief conditions.

From then on, production was left to the private sector and research could focus on finding technical solutions to challenges in the field. One of these demands arose in the late 1970s, with the great challenge of rhizobia adapted to the new agricultural frontier of the Cerrado. In the 1990s, another important result came with the release of two soil bacteria (strains of Bradyrhizobium) into the Cerrado. This technology allowed the expansion of soybean cultivation without the need for any supplementation with nitrogen fertilizer and paved the way for the Midwestern states to become leaders in the production of the legume.

However, research did not stop and, since then, several technologies have been launched, such as soybean reinoculation and co-inoculation, furrow inoculation, new strains, such as Azospirillum brasilense for grasses and for soybean and bean co-inoculation, among others. The industry, in turn, also made a leap in quality, with an increase, in some cases, of more than 100 times in the concentration of desired bacteria and freedom from contaminants.

Without a doubt, “consolidated” provides economic and environmental returns. In the case of soy alone, the estimated savings from biological nitrogen fixation for the next harvest are estimated at US$40 billion, in addition to avoiding the emission of more than 200 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalents. This, not to mention the benefits with various other legumes, crops and pastures.

But the “innovator” is knocking on our door. With the increasing interest in bioinputs, several other microorganisms, microbial processes, new formulations and many solutions for Brazilian agriculture are being announced or about to be launched. Impactful results are expected. The use of bioinputs can bring nutritional balance to plants and better combat pests, diseases, nutritional and climate problems.

To continue writing a success story for bioinputs in Brazil, the “innovative” needs to walk alongside the “consolidated”. Each advance in research must be respected and be the subject of continuous improvements, not setbacks. This symbiosis could mean that, in a few years, the savings provided by bioinputs exceed US$150 billion.

Mariangela Hungary, researcher at Embrapa Soja