Authors: Ekaterina Yakovenko, Head of Innovation and Demand Generation, and Dr Timothy Lewis, Product Innovation Manager
What kind of world do you want to live in in 2050?
One where countries fear for their food security? Where millions of people struggle to find food? Where large swathes of our farmland have become barren, due to overworked soils and polluted waterways?
Or do you want to be part of a world in which nobody fears where their next meal is coming from, where nature is respected and farmers are thriving, having succeeded in meeting the challenges of growing enough food without harming the planet?
We trust that we can agree on the latter. But getting there will not be easy and, to achieve it, we need to start changing our behaviour now. Industry and forward-thinking farmers need to work closely, start-ups need to collaborate with and be supported by established businesses, and governments need to develop new policy programmes to develop and support new solutions to today’s agricultural challenges.
Next week, Anglo American Crop Nutrients will be at World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London, taking this message to the masses. We are looking for like-minded organisations, start-ups and individuals to collaborate with taking this message to the masses to change the system. Whether you work in food production or sales, insurance, digital technology, agriculture or finance, or simply have a desire to tackle the one of the biggest challenges of our times, we’d love to hear from you.
The solutions of the past cannot be the solutions of the future – we believe the agricultural system is on the cusp of great change. New solutions are required at scale.
That is why we are determined to play our part by bringing to market a new natural mineral based fertilizer called POLY4. Created from the mineral polyhalite, it is suitable for organic use and has a lower carbon footprint than conventional synthetic fertilisers, so is kinder to the environment. Studies have shown it can enhance soil health, improve yields and improve the performance of nitrogen and phosphorus inputs.
To be made available at a global scale from 2027, POLY4 breaks the silos of traditional thinking of what a fertiliser can be, allowing different groups of growers to transition from unsustainable practices they have always known to more sustainable practices such as regenerative agriculture.
But while we have a game-changing product, we don’t by any means have all the answers.
And this is where you come in.
Tackling big problems cannot be done by a single company. The only way to achieve it is through collaboration and innovation. Polyhalite is our platform for innovation to drive towards a future where people and nature work hand in hand to build a more sustainable agricultural system.
We work together with partners across various industries, pooling expertise, scale, reach and IP to find new ways to drive change.
As an example, last year, we began our involvement with UK supermarket giant Tesco. Tesco brought together their largest farmers and technology providers so that they could learn from each other, allowing the technology providers to introduce their product to the farmers and start trials to see how these products can help create improvements and reduce carbon emissions.
We want to do much more of this kind of thing. Pursuing knowledge and converting it into helping people grow is what excites and drives us as individuals, and we know we’re not the only ones who see the world like this.
That’s why one of our primary objectives in going to the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit is to create more connections and explore opportunities for further collaborations with potential partners.
We’d love to hear from you if you’re heading along to the event. Come and visit us at our stand or get in touch for a one-to-one conversation – further details are below.
We seek to nurture ideas to fruition in a respectful and competent approach to collaboration. You need to be able to trust the people you are working with and be open and honest about where you see things going. We feel exactly the same, which is why working with us as very much a two-way street.
Now is our time to build a better tomorrow, together. Connect with us at World Agri-Tech London in person, the app or LinkedIn via Ekaterina Yakovenko and Tim Lewis
* Anglo American is a Gold Partner at the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London on September 26 and 27. You can find them on Stand 29 and find out more information at https://uk.angloamerican.com/