Brazil’s Mariangela Hungria Honored at 2025 World Food Prize Laureate Award Ceremony for Pioneering Soil Microbiology and Sustainable Farming
24 October 2025, Brazil: Brazilian soil scientist Mariangela Hungria was celebrated as the 2025 World Food Prize Laureate at a high-level ceremony presided over by Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, who delivered the Laureate Proclamation.
The ceremony was also attended by chief guest, H.E. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, Vice President of the Republic of Ghana. Her Excellency gave a keynote speech and then joined a fireside chat with 2017 World Food Prize Laureate Hon. Akinwumi Adesina, the former President of the African Development Bank, emphasizing the need for bold investment and shared responsibility to tackle interconnected challenges from livestock productivity and soil degradation to conflict and migration.
The Laureate Award Ceremony included a heartfelt performance by Tony Award-winning and Broadway actress and singer Adrienne Warren, with a rousing set from a traditional Brazilian Samba group.
Hungria received the $500,000 World Food Prize for her groundbreaking work in biological nitrogen fixation, harnessing symbiotic soil microorganisms as an alternative to synthetic fertilizers.
I have dedicated my life to biologicals,” said Dr. Hungria in her acceptance remarks. “I am confident that we are continuing Dr. Norman Borlaug’s dream into a new vision—a MicroGreen Revolution—driven by biological inputs.”
The low-cost technologies and products she developed have increased crop productivity affordably and sustainably across tens of millions of hectares, enabling farmers to save billions and mitigating agriculture’s environmental and climate footprint.
“When I started out, nobody spoke about biological nitrogen fixation. But I loved microbiology, I loved basic science and I had many ideas I wanted to investigate and study. Replacing the use of chemicals with biologicals in agriculture has been the fight of my life,” Hungria said. “I’m really proud of making a contribution towards producing food while decreasing the environmental impact. The goal was to increase yield with the least possible use of chemicals, and we achieved this through more biologicals.”
On behalf of the Laureate Selection Committee, its Chair Gebisa Ejeta, said, “Mariangela Hungria’s pioneering scientific achievements and dedication to sustainable agriculture have made her a transformative leader in global agriculture, guiding groundbreaking projects and innovations on nearly every continent. Her far-reaching impact makes her a truly deserving recipient of the 2025 World Food Prize.”
Dr. Hungria also participated in a panel earlier in the day along with Leonardus Vergütz, Chief Scientific Officer at OCP Nutricrops and moderator Paul Schickler, Chair, Board of Directors, World Food Prize Foundation and owner of III Ag. They discussed soil-centered solutions to strengthen food systems that are nutritious, sustainable and resilient to global challenges.
Next year in 2026, the World Food Prize will celebrate its 40th anniversary. All 56 World Food Prize Laureates over the past 39 years have advanced the vision of Norman Borlaug by driving innovations that enhance global food security, improve livelihoods and safeguard the planet’s natural resources for future generations.
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