Each Breakthrough Innovation Starts with an Idea

Innovations and Technologies for Healthier People and Planet

We have a vital role and responsibility to safeguard and strive to advance the health, hygiene and safety of people all over the world, sustainably. Through innovation and technologies, the Environmental Science unit at Bayer fosters healthy environments where we live, work and play.

Advancing health, hygiene and safety

Together with our customers, we are working to protect against and ultimately eradicate debilitating and life-threatening diseases. Globally, we help to ensure the safety of food, buildings, transport, and infrastructure. We protect public health and hygiene and preserve forests and biodiversity. Our solutions also contribute to enhancing people’s wellbeing by maintaining green spaces. In a fast-evolving world, we are constantly exploring new ways to deliver better, more sustainable solutions to benefit our customers, consumers, and our planet.

Eradicating malaria through vector control

Half of our world’s population is at risk for malaria. Farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and India are especially vulnerable to this life-threatening disease, which could become even more widespread due to insecticide resistance.

Bayer has been involved in the development and supply of effective vector control tools for more than 60 years and we continue to invest significantly in the research for innovative solutions to address resistance and other challenges in disease transmission. That’s why we’ve signed the “Zero by 40” declaration to eradicate malaria by 2040, making a commitment to work together with partners and share our diverse knowledge and resources with others in the industry as a part of the Innovative Vector Control Consortium. Together, we are working tirelessly to help stamp out malaria and keep communities healthy. 

To date, Bayer has supplied enough vector control products to protect over 200 million people from Malaria. We continue to seek innovative ways of overcoming challenges like mosquito resistance to ensure sustainable prevention for the 1.1 billion people still at high risk today. But our work doesn’t just focus on Malaria.

Over half of the world’s population is at risk of contracting vector-borne diseases, which occur from infections following bites from blood-sucking insects like mosquitoes, ticks and other infectious disease transmitting organisms. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), vector-borne diseases like malaria, dengue, zika, chagas, and leishmaniasis disease cause 700,000 deaths annually. Controlling the insects and other organisms spreading these disease (vectors) is the most effective way to eradicate these diseases.

Vector control uses a variety of interventions to target mosquitos and other insects, stopping them from spreading the diseases they may carry. We provide an array of solutions including indoor residual and residual surface sprays for application indoors, larvicides for use at insect breeding sites, and space sprays designed for application in large areas.

Our expertise has shown us that vector control needs a holistic approach if it is to be truly effective in helping save lives. With our 360° activities, we provide an innovative product portfolio, interdisciplinary partnerships, training and education programs as well as global advocacy.

Ensuring safe travel and public spaces through industrial vegetation management

We develop efficient and sustainable solutions that help control invasive weeds – from rail tracks to public spaces to industrial areas. In rail traffic, invasive vegetation puts passenger safety at risk and causes costly delays. Uncontrolled vegetation can lead to severe safety issues like fire outbreaks, and public health and biodiversity issues. To reduce these impacts, Bayer created the Smart Weeding System (SWS). This geo-localized digital platform uses weed detection technology allowing trains to target and spray only existing weeds reducing the amount of herbicides used to clear tracks by up to 50%.

Forestry – helping to sustainably provide wood for the world

As the global demand for timber is expected to quadruple by 2050, we are working to meet the demand in a sustainable way. We collaborate and partner to develop efficient and sustainably managed forest plantations to maximize production and provide renewable access to a secure pulp and wood source.

With tailored solutions to manage non-native or invasive vegetation, environmental scientists can ensure entire forests thrive. By helping forestry plantations control tough weeds, invasive brush and difficult grasses, we’re helping protect natural forests, improve soil health and reduce carbon emissions while satisfying a growing world demand of renewable wood and wood-based products.

Improving public health, hygiene, and food safety through professional pest management

Every year, 30 million adults and children worldwide suffer from asthma due to the exposure to pests. In addition, the amount of food destroyed by rodents every year is estimated to be enough to feed over 200 million people. We are working to improve public health and hygiene as well as ensure food safety by providing professional pest management solutions to monitor, repel and control pests.

In our integrated pest management approach, we offer solutions, consultancy and training, and innovative new digital pest management and monitoring systems. We work closely with PCOs around the world to keep private and public spaces pest-free. Through our integrated pest-management solutions, together with pest controllers, we help protect public health, foster a healthy environment and ensure food safety everywhere. 

We also understand the importance of connecting consumers with qualified PCOs in their area to improve the quality of life at home. Currently launched in China, our ByePest technology offers local residents facing problems with pests at home the opportunity to schedule and pay for simple and immediate pest control services.

Maintaining beautiful green spaces where we live, work, and play

To support a healthy lifestyle, we develop solutions to help protect and care for healthy turf, lawns, and ornamental plants. Green spaces represent a fundamental component of an urban ecosystem, such as parks, sports fields, and golf courses. We create solutions and services which help optimize inputs including water, labor, resources and energy consumption, and bring this vision to life through the superior quality of our solutions and expertise in plant science.