Rooted in the Land, Reaching for the Stars: Digital Farming Impact and Outreach

Our work is rooted in the land. We spend a majority of our time considering the benefits of digital farming technologies on farmers around the world. How farmers will use our technology, what sorts of value they can derive from our efforts, and how the future will need us to think differently.

It’s what we do every day, it’s energizing, and it’s driving real change. But the story of the technologies that are making our food systems more resilient has so many more chapters than the myriad direct benefits we bring to our customers. Our story is changing the world, and telling that story is more critical than ever.

In mid-May, we were both presented with the happily coincidental opportunity to travel to New York City for two incredible opportunities at the BMO Capital Markets Global Farm to Market Conference and the Wall Street Journal Future of Everything Festival (watch the replay of the Innovating for a More Sustainable and Secure Food Value Chain panel discussion here through this LinkedIn article). 

While these events lie far outside the traditional agricultural sphere, it’s a great time to pause and reflect on why these opportunities to engage in dialogue are so important.

VP of Operations Nikki Davis, right, alongside co-panelists Kathleen Mitford, second from left, Microsoft, and David Meffe, second from right, Intel, and moderator Willem Marx, Wall Street Journal, at the Wall Street Journal Future of Everything Festival, May 17, 2022.

Bayer has led and will continue to lead in developing technologies that advance farming in ways that combine the best in traditional farm tech with new, data-centered approaches to managing risk and productivity. We are today riding the next wave of agricultural innovation begun with the inception of digital farming techniques and continued through our partnership with Microsoft, which will bring accountability and traceability to the entire food value chain.

Opportunities to tell our story to non-farmer audiences focus on establishing a shared vision for the future. Of telling stories around what’s possible through partnership and innovation. Of pulling back the curtain and educating audiences on what modern farming means. Of all of us moving in the same direction and identifying the same opportunities to improve lives.

Regardless of the venue, we’re honored for the chance to speak and share on behalf of our teams at events like these, representing what’s done today and how it will change the future tomorrow.