News

Bayer: Biotechnology and AI could accelerate the next generation of crop improvement

Biotechnology is a broad field, and Bayer Crop Science is using several tools to improve crop genetics and help farmers manage risk. Amanda McClerren, Bayer’s head of biotechnology, says the company is combining traditional breeding, biotech traits and newer genome-editing technology to develop crops with improved yield, climate resilience and other desirable characteristics. Genome editing allows scientists to make precise changes to a plant’s own genes and, in some cases, move from an initial gene edit to an adapted plant in about two to three years — compared with the 10 to 15 years that traditional breeding can take.

One example is Bayer’s work on more standable soybeans. McClerren says new varieties are being developed with shorter, more compact plants that could have up to 50 percent less lodging, helping reduce harvest losses and potentially giving farmers more flexibility with planting dates. Bayer expects this characteristic to become available in soybean varieties in the early 2030s, with genome edits expected throughout its corn and soybean pipelines by 2035.

McClerren says the next big opportunity comes from combining biological innovation with artificial intelligence. Bayer has decades of agricultural data, and generative and agentic AI can help scientists analyze that information more quickly, identify new insights and determine which traits could deliver the most value to farmers. The goal, she says, is ultimately pretty simple: solve the right problems at the right time and deliver technology that provides real value in the field.

Brownfield talked with McClerren at Bayer Innovation Showcase held in Huxley, Iowa in early September.

Listen to the conversation: