Despite the reputational attacks that Brazilian agribusiness has faced internationally in recent times — whether through statements by American President Donald Trump, by French farmers or in series and films that cite an alleged increase in deforestation in the country — this mistaken image can be answered by numbers, according to CEO of Bayer Brasil, Marcio Santos.
“Brazilian agribusiness has a reputation for being a reliable supplier, which delivers what it promises, offering a (wide) range of products. And every two days a new market opens for Brazilian agribusiness. This speaks a little about who we are”, said the executive.
Santos was the guest on the ninth episode of Raiz do Negócio, his road between the countryside and Faria Lima, a partnership between InfoMoney and The AgriBiz. In this extraordinary edition, the conversation took place in Belém, Pará, during the edition of COP 30, with the correspondent and founder of The AgriBiz, Tatiana Freitas.
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High demand
One of the topics addressed by the CEO of Bayer Brasil to corroborate his point of view was the high demand that exists for products originating in Brazil. Exports are sent to more than 150 countries. “Would these countries buy a product from someone they don’t believe in? And to eat it on top of that? It’s difficult”, he highlighted.
And, over time, he said, Brazilian exports began to serve more and more countries around the world. This inherently brings different realities and requirements, which culminates in greater monitoring. According to Santos, this is a bit like playing in a tournament with greater visibility in a global sport. “The exposure is much greater. And what we do here is relevant.”
In short, the executive concluded that it is up to the Brazilian market to be aware of what it exports and show the world the quality of internal processes. “We deserve to show what we are doing.”
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Next harvest in Brazil
There is currently a certain pessimism regarding the next Brazilian harvest. Especially due to commercial disputes, which create uncertainty in the market. Some examples of this are the tension between the United States and China and Donald Trump’s tariffs that hit Brazil. These themes have even been dragging on over the last few months.
Furthermore, more restricted access to credit can also be included in this basket, amid a local scenario of rising interest rates, with Selic at 15%. It is worth highlighting that this level has persisted since June of this year.
The CEO of Bayer Brasil, however, tends to be a little optimistic, even with this type of scenario. According to him, there are regions in the country with problems that need to be addressed, such as the cases of Rio Grande do Sul (after the 2024 floods), Paraná (with impacted hectares of soybeans) and even Mato Grosso Sul. Finally, he reinforced: “we will have challenges. That’s part of the activity. But I’m optimistic”, he said.
