We did get to hear from a high ranking official in the Argentine government during the IFAJ Congress this week – but not in English and there was no opportunity to ask questions.

Lorenzo Basso’s title is Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture of Argentina, so not exactly the equal to Tom Vilsack in the U.S., more like Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden.

Some interesting takeaways from his comments:
Argentina is able to feed ten times its population of 40 million people
Argentina is the number one exporter of soybean oil, soybean meal, biodiesel, pears, lemons, lemon juice, and honey.
Four pillars for “smart agriculture” they are adopting in Argentina are:
– No till practices – 80% of farms now
– Crop rotation – working on that, nearly 50% is soybeans
– Biotechnology, pesticides and stewardship
– Precision agriculture technology – growing rapidly
Poultry production in the country has adopted new technology and become more competitive but beef industry needs to do more to produce more calves since birth rate for calves is the same as it was 50 years ago.

I recorded some of the Secretary’s comments through my headphones with the interpreter. He also discusses ethanol production, dairy, value-added agribusiness and much more: Argentine Agriculture Secretary Lorenzo Bosso
2013 IFAJ Congress Photo Album