Luiz Guilherme

Luiz Roberto Guimarães Guilherme is the Head of Science of OCP Nutricrops (Morocco) and a Professor (on leave) at Federal University of Lavras (Brazil). His early career work focused on studies of fertilizer efficiency to enhance agricultural production, with positive impacts on soil fertility, crop yields, and the economic sustainability of Brazilian agriculture. Luiz Guilherme’s research has focused on the fate of trace elements in agroecosystems and mining areas, a topic of great socioeconomic and environmental importance in Brazil and worldwide. Some of his recent work has addressed soil and food security issues, emphasizing the aspects of food quality and safety, as well as soil quality related to trace elements in agroecosystems. Luiz Roberto has coordinated the HarvestZinc Project in Brazil, a significant initiative that demonstrates the viability of the fertilizer strategy and its considerable potential to alleviate micronutrient deficiencies (with a particular focus on zinc, selenium, and iodine), thereby positively impacting human health. Luiz’s work on the fate of trace elements in tropical (agro)ecosystems has helped farmers and policymakers develop a series of standards and recommendations on the presence of these elements in soils and food in Brazil. Luiz Roberto is a member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and currently coordinates the National Institute of Science and Technology on “Soil and Food Safety”, an initiative of the National Council of Scientific and Technological Development of Brazil (CNPq).