MAIZALL Support for IICA Messages on the U.N. Food Systems Summit

MAIZALL has sent letters to the agriculture Ministers of Argentina, Brazil and the U.S. to express support for the Declaration of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) on the Food Systems Summit, which was agreed by 34 countries in the Americas in June. MAIZALL applauded the unified position which IICA adopted, in particular the sixteen core messages that support science-based decision-making, the role of the farmers of the Western Hemisphere in growing and exporting food to the world and the promotion of innovation in agriculture. With a view to the IICA Ministerial meeting on September 1 and 2, MAIZALL encouraged the governments to continue the work in the run-up to the U.N. Summit on September 23rd.

For close to a year Maizall has actively contributed to the preparation of the U.N. Food Systems Summit through the participation in webinars and the submission of position papers. MAIZALL Director Sergio Bortolozzo is a member of the Champions Network and the members of MAIZALL have participated in their respective national dialogues.

Past MAIZALL Chairman Chip Councell and Sergio Bortolozzo discussed the use and benefits of technology in their farming operations in the U.S. and Brazil during a preparatory conference on the Summit organized by IICA. Mr. Councell received the prestigious “Leaders of Rurality” award from IICA in recognition of his innovative initiatives that work to raise awareness about the importance of agriculture and how it relates to food security and environmental protection.

In its letter to Ministers MAIZALL pointed out that in Argentina, Brazil and the U.S., more than 95 % of the maize is genetically modified (GM) and that it helps farmers to increase the yield per hectare, to reduce the use of plant protection products and to conserve the quality and biodiversity of the soil. MAIZALL argued that biotech seeds make it easier to avoid tilling the soil, and require fewer field passes and operations with machinery and that this helps to reduce fuel cost as well as CO2 emissions, critical in the fight against climate change. MAIZALL emphasized that, as the world’s population continues to grow, farmers all over the world need to have access to appropriate technologies to meet the food security needs today and in the future.