Syngenta appoints Chief Sustainability Officer
Basel, Switzerland
- Alexandra Brand appointed to the newly created role of Chief Sustainability Officer
- CSO brings further focus to Syngenta’s contribution to more sustainable agricultural production
- Helping achieve even better environmental outcomes in agriculture is central to Syngenta operating as a responsible company
Syngenta has today publicly announced the appointment of Alexandra Brand, previously Regional Director for Europe, Africa and Middle East, to the new position of Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO). As CSO, Brand will report directly to CEO Erik Fyrwald.
Alexandra Brand will lead the newly created Business Sustainability Group to evolve existing sustainability initiatives including The Good Growth Plan and to drive forward the company’s sustainability agenda. The group aligns the company’s Regulatory Affairs, Sustainability and Stewardship, External Affairs and Communications activities.
In making the announcement, Syngenta CEO Erik Fyrwald said: “We are already playing an important role in helping to feed the world and we want to do more as we go forward. To do this we need to have sensible discussions with governments, NGOs, academics and the food chain on the regulatory, policy and societal challenges and opportunities our industry faces. We have made real progress and we want to build on this with new and different conversations about what more sustainable agriculture will mean in the future.
“We want to help further shape agriculture and its place in society - the position of CSO will be central in leading this. Alexandra has a real passion for helping farmers to become more productive while managing the impacts of climate change and having to produce more with less,” said Mr. Fyrwald.
Alexandra Brand said: “The technology we bring to farmers can help them safely feed the world and take care of our planet – this includes reducing greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption and soil conservation. We also play a key role in helping to preserve biodiversity and precision technology will be important in all of these areas.
"I’m really excited by the opportunity to drive further change in our company and in our industry. We are looking to create new partnerships and work together with groups we might not have worked with in the past. We will build on the significant achievements of The Good Growth Plan, with even greater transparency and commitment from Syngenta to further improve the sustainability of global agriculture.”
About Syngenta
Syngenta is a leading agriculture company helping to improve global food security by enabling millions of farmers to make better use of available resources. Through world class science and innovative crop solutions, our 28,000 people in over 90 countries are working to transform how crops are grown. We are committed to rescuing land from degradation, enhancing biodiversity and revitalizing rural communities.
To learn more visit www.syngenta.com and www.goodgrowthplan.com. Follow us on Twitter® at www.twitter.com/Syngenta.
Find out more about Alexandra Brand
Alexandra Brand was appointed Syngenta’s Chief Sustainability Officer in January.
Prior to this appointment, Alexandra was Regional Director of Syngenta’s crop protection and seed operations across Europe, Africa and the Middle East – a region with sales of 3.8 billion dollars and approximately 3,000 employees. Alexandra joined Syngenta in late 2015.
Before joining Syngenta, Alexandra held various positions in the BASF Group, including senior vice president of its global Animal Nutrition business unit, vice president of the Global Marketing Pharma Ingredients unit as well as chief of staff for BASF’s chief executive officer.
Alexandra gained international experience through her role as director of BASF’s Sub Regional Operating Manager Intermediates in South Asia, with its headquarters in Mumbai, India. She began her professional career in global research at BASF.
Alexandra studied chemistry at the Technische Universität in Darmstadt, Germany, from 1990 to 1998 and completed her studies with a doctorate.
