Interview with Dr. Wolfgang Plischke

“Sustainability is driven by innovations”

Dr. Wolfgang Plischke, member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG responsible for Innovation, Technology and Environment and for the Asia / Pacific region

Zoom image

Dr. Wolfgang Plischke, member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG responsible for Innovation, Technology and Environment and for the Asia / Pacific region

Dr. Plischke, Bayer is committed to sustainable development. The issues involved are of a long-term nature. Is there a danger, given the current financial and economic crisis, that companies will postpone essential investments?
There may well be a risk of this – but not at Bayer. We are committed to setting an example. Despite the difficult situation at present, we will be investing a record sum of €2.9 billion in research and development this year, for example, because we are convinced that sustainability is driven by innovations. Cutting back in this area would amount to thinking and planning in the short term. We are also committed to climate protection and are systematically pressing ahead with the Bayer Climate Program that we initiated in 2007. We intend to invest a total of €1 billion in this program by 2010.

How can companies’ climate protection activities be supported on a political level?
There is an urgent need for effective regulations to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions on a global level. What is called for in this context is a strategic alliance between politicians and business. The international climate conference in Copenhagen at the end of the year must set the tone in this respect.

What contribution can companies make in such an alliance?

There are a number of possibilities. A study on the costs of climate protection presented by management consultants McKinsey in Brussels in January 2009 indicated that emissions could be cut by over a third between 1990 and 2030 at a cost of less than one percent of global GDP. The majority of this reduction can be achieved through technical measures that already make economic sense because the necessary investments are financed by the resultant savings made on energy costs. For example, better insulation and vehicles with improved fuel economy can significantly boost energy efficiency. Clearly, politicians need to work with companies because only they have the necessary technical know-how. This presents many companies with excellent opportunities and creates a win-win situation.

Can Bayer benefit too?

Of course! Under our Bayer Climate Program, for example, we are currently analyzing our sites worldwide to identify new potential for cutting emissions, and ways of realizing this potential, and achieving our ambitious emissions targets. We expect the optimization of our processes to result in a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of around 10 percent across the Group as a whole. In addition to benefiting the climate, this will also cut costs and make our sites even more competitive. Improving our own energy efficiency is just one aspect, though. Just as important are our innovative products that help reduce emissions around the globe. Examples include our insulating materials and our high-quality materials to help lower energy consumption in automotive engineering.

In your view, what are the other key spheres of activity involved in sustainable development besides climate protection?

The growing world population and the increasing demand for food are major concerns. According to estimates by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, the global population will exceed nine billion in 2050. Agricultural production would need to double to ensure all these people were fed. Given that the amount of land available for cultivation cannot be increased, the figures clearly show that this will only be possible using the latest crop protection products and innovative seeds as part of a sustainable agricultural policy. We are obtaining promising results in both these areas.

In addition to boosting crop yields, the increasing shortage of water is also becoming an issue in the sustainability debate.

That’s true. Water is a growing problem, but the issues vary enormously from region to region. In Germany, for example, water quality is the major concern. Bayer was very quick to develop and utilize effective wastewater treatment technology, which is also used to treat municipal wastewater. In many parts of the world, however, there is a shortage of clean drinking water. All too often in these regions, disproportionately large amounts of water are used for irrigation. Around the globe, 70 percent of the water drawn from freshwater sources is used in agriculture. We are therefore carrying out research into seeds and developing methods of cultivation that require less water. In addition, we made a public commitment to help find solutions with other partners by signing the UN Global Compact initiative’s CEO Water Mandate in 2008. In this area, too, Bayer is looking to utilize its many years of expertise and its innovative strength to develop sustainable solutions for global water protection and efficient water management. The Global Exploration Fund that we have set up with National Geographic to finance research projects also serves this purpose.

The health of a great many people is threatened by factors besides hunger and thirst. Developing countries in particular are affected by poor access to medical care. How is Bayer tackling this problem?

We are endeavoring to improve the access of emerging markets and developing countries to our medicines so that as many people as possible benefit from Bayer innovations. We have recently developed our Social Health Care Program to pool our existing measures. This program involves aspects such as improved access to innovative medicines to treat oncological and hematological diseases. It also focuses on treating infectious tropical diseases and on boosting women’s health and family planning worldwide.

You have referred to a whole host of major global challenges. Can you sum up by providing an assessment of how these challenges can be overcome?

In my opinion, the majority of the problems referred to can be solved by providing access to innovative products and technologies. For each of these areas, there also needs to be political input to encourage technology and information transfer in emerging markets and developing countries. In addition, it is important for patents and trademark rights to be protected. This is particularly true for companies carrying out research such as Bayer, since these rights provide the platform for our investments in research and development. In order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, we need a globally level playing field for emissions trading with a standardized pricing structure for CO₂. Until global emissions trading exists, emissions allowances should be issued free of charge to companies in global competition to avoid unfair competition within the E.U.

One final question. The Bayer Group’s Sustainability Program sets targets to be reached by 2010. What will happen after this?

The issue of sustainability will remain a key focal point for us and we will ensure the strategic development of our Sustainability Program over the coming year. This will include setting new targets to reflect current developments and incorporate our expertise in as targeted a way as possible. As a result, we will be focusing our commitment to sustainability even more sharply on our core business and on global megatrends.