Why Biodiversity Matters
Biodiversity is the variety of life on Earth — from the genetic diversity within a single species, to the wide range of species such as soil microbes, insects, and birds, and the diversity of ecosystems like wetlands, forests, and grasslands. Biodiversity is essential for maintaining ecosystem services such as:
- climate regulation and carbon sequestration
- clean water and air
- soil fertility and water retention
- natural pest control
- pollination of crops
But according to the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES, 2019), approximately one million species are at risk of extinction due to human activity. Key drivers are land use change, climate change, pollution, invasive alien species and direct exploitation. IPBES (“Nexus report 2024”) estimates that ecosystem degradation creates costs up to $25 trillion annually (~ 24 % of the entire global economy). These costs arise due to the loss of ecosystem services such as climate regulation, health impacts, reduced agricultural productivity or increased vulnerability to climate related disasters.
Biodiversity as part of our Nature Strategy Development
Companies that proactively address the risks of biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation are better positioned to manage nature-related physical, transitional, and systemic risks. By doing so, they can unlock early opportunities to transform these risks into nature-positive business models.
That’s why we are taking a close look at how our business both depends on and impacts nature and biodiversity. This includes identifying the associated risks and opportunities across our operations and value chain.
This work has been informed by established frameworks such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) or the Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD). This helps us systematically integrate nature-related considerations into our overall strategy—enhancing resilience, improving transparency, and supporting long-term value creation.
Bayer´s role in promoting Biodiversity in Agriculture
As the world’s population grows, so does the demand for food, animal feed, biofuels, and materials like cotton. Meeting these needs is a major challenge—especially when we also want to protect the planet’s biodiversity.
Farming naturally focuses on growing specific crops, which can reduce the variety of plants and animals in an area. But agriculture isn’t just a threat—it can also be a source of biodiversity. Over centuries, farming has shaped landscapes that support unique ecosystems and species that wouldn’t exist without human interventions. The key is finding smart ways to grow what we need while preserving biodiversity and ecosystem services.
Bayer does not control how farmers or landowners use their land—for example, whether they preserve natural habitats or convert them to farmland. These decisions are made by those who own and work the land. We focus on our own activities, like research and production, and encourage suppliers and customers in collaboration with other stakeholders to promote agricultural practices which sustain biodiversity and ecosystem services. With our product offerings spanning Seeds & Traits, Crop Protection (including both Small Molecules and Biologicals), and Digital Solutions—we aim to equip farmers with tools to increase productivity on existing farmland, while minimizing the impact of crop production.
In collaboration with academic institutions, farming communities worldwide and other stakeholders, Bayer focuses on the following areas to contribute to a better balance between production and preservation:
1. Soil Health
We promote regenerative agriculture principles that improve soil health while supporting farmers’ yields and profitability. These include:
- Keeping the soil covered
- Diversifying crop rotations
- Minimizing soil disturbance
- Optimizing inputs to reduce environmental impact
Applying these practices can foster beneficial soil microbial communities, enhance carbon storage, water drainage and boost long-term productivity. However, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution—each farm requires a tailored approach based on its unique agro-climatic and market conditions.
Examples:
Direct Seeded Rice
Carbon Ventures: Agriculture and Environment
Bayer's ForwardFarming Mission
2. Land Management
Our biodiversity-related engagements focus on different pathways of impact, each contributing to our broader goal of promoting nature-positive agriculture and sustainable land use.
- Our solutions: Our innovative seeds, traits, crop protection, and digital solutions help increase and protect yields—enhancing land-use productivity. This progress has played a key role in decoupling human population growth from the expansion of agricultural land, enabling the production of more food and feed on less land. This is a pre-requisite to minimizing further agricultural land expansion and preserving natural ecosystems.
- Supporting research:
- We collaborate with internal and external experts to better understand the key drivers of insect decline: (Insect Decline—Evaluation of Potential Drivers of a Complex Phenomenon; Drivers and pressures behind insect decline in Central and Western Europe based on long-term monitoring data; Our Views on Insect Decline)
- We conduct research to test the effectiveness of biodiversity enhancing measures in intensively cultivated areas- including our Forward Farms, Flower strip networks offer promising long term effects on pollinator species richness in intensively cultivated agricultural areas - PubMed
- We support research to identify pragmatic and feasible ways to better balance production and preservation - e.g.: Global Assessment from Local Observations (GALO) - Woodwell Climate; Enhancing Biodiversity and Resilience in Intensive Farming Systems: Results from an ETH Zürich-IFPRI Collaborative study; Improving Sustainability of Agricultural and Food Systems Research Program – World Food System Center
- We support the identification and testing of feasible and affordable technologies and metrics to measure biodiversity in agricultural landscapes via research consortia (Home - BioMonitor4CAP) or multi-stakeholder platforms such as WBCSD. These technologies can enable more effective, result-based incentive schemes to reward farmers and landowners accordingly.
- Financial contributions: We support nature and biodiversity restoration projects conducted by third parties. Biodiversity In the Community; LEAF Coalition
- Own sites: Bayer currently has 41 sites certified by the Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC), a testament to the strong commitment and active involvement of our employees in enhancing biodiversity across our own operations.
3. Species Protection
Agriculture relies on species that provide essential ecosystem services—such as pollination, natural pest control, soil formation, and nutrient cycling. At the same time, it faces increasing pressure from pests, weeds, and diseases.
In integrated cropping systems, crop protection products play a vital role in safeguarding yields and securing harvests. Bayer rigorously tests these products to minimize their impact on non-target organisms like bees, earthworms, and beneficial insects. Before launch, products undergo years of ecotoxicological studies, assessing persistence, mobility, bioaccumulation, and effects across aquatic and terrestrial food webs. Food safety and regulatory authorities evaluate these studies constantly and only authorize products deemed safe.
We continuously refine our testing methods and risk assessment approaches to reflect the latest scientific advances—striving for safer, more sustainable solutions.
Beyond chemical crop protection, Bayer invests in a broad portfolio of innovative tools: insect-resistant traits, tolerant varieties, precision application technologies, and biologicals—all contributing to reducing exposure to non-target species.
Learn more: Bayer’s Product Development Report
4. Genetic and Crop Diversity
Genetic diversity is vital for food security. Bayer is actively following the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and committing to its objectives to conserve, improve and share the benefits of genetic resources, which is also stated in our biodiversity position paper. To protect and conserve the genetic diversity of crops, we contribute to seed collections and gene banks. We participate in public-private partnerships, and partner with organizations like Plant Breeders without Boarders, Fair Planet or CGIAR to empower farmers, build capacity, and create networks in plant breeding. We aim to conserve biological diversity and utilize genetic resources sustainably and fairly. Please find an overview of our recent activities here.
Transparency and Accountability
Bayer was recognized in the 2023 Nature Benchmark by the World Benchmarking Alliance (WBA) for its efforts to reduce environmental impact and contribute to a nature-positive future. Among nearly 400 leading companies across eight sectors, Bayer ranked #8 overall, and achieved a top position of 4# in the Governance & Strategy category, reflecting our strong commitment and leadership integrating sustainability across our business.
As a member of the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), Bayer actively supports the development of transparent reporting standards that guide responsible investments and help businesses understand and address nature-related risks and opportunities. This work is essential for mobilizing action and capital toward nature- and biodiversity-positive outcomes.
Bayer is directly contributing to several targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted at COP15 under the Convention on Biological Diversity.
We contribute to international goals including the UN Sustainable Development Goals (in context of biodiversity SDG 2 and SDG 15 are highly relevant).
Learn more about further resources and reports:
The teaser photo was taken from long-term monitoring program in Upper Rhine Valley and represents an impactful flower strip in between corn fields used with kind permission of Institute of Agroecology and Biodiversity (IFAB).