On Wednesday, May 10, the Johanna Döbereiner Biological Resources Center (CRB-JD from the acronym in Portuguese) was inaugurated in Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. In addition to gathering microorganisms of recognized agricultural importance, the center will offer several services and activities related to the bioprocesses, production and analysis of microbial inoculants used to stimulate biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) and thus increase productivity in farmlands. “Agriculture today is responsible for nearly 25% of the Brazilian GDP and for almost 40% of all jobs. And it is not an exaggeration to say that much of that is due to the inoculation technology”, underscored Embrapa's executive director, Ladislau Martin Neto, during the center's opening ceremony. He recalled the extent to which BNF leveraged national agriculture for decades and to which Embrapa Agrobiology was a leading player in this story. “This is a very respected house. This unit was a protagonist in the change in circumstances in Brazil, and today it has a leading role in many Embrapa portfolios like BNF, climate change, and organic agriculture, for instance. The team's effort makes all the difference for our company”, he praised. For the general head of Embrapa Agrobiology, Gustavo Xavier, the CRB-JD's inauguration is the concretion of a joint effort of many years, which embodies the dedication and the work of current and previous teams. “Our work ranges from basic inoculant research to production and distribution, to get where the industry has not been able to reach yet. Today we are the only institution recommended by the Ministry of Agriculture as the official supplier of bacteria of interest to the industry”, Xavier stressed. Nowadays CRB-JD conserves more than 3,000 microorganisms, and annually makes over 300 of them, as well as over 1,000 doses of inoculants, available for research and technology transfer projects. Moreover, a microbial DNA bank has been structured to be used for studies so that they will not require cultivation, shortening the length of research and ensuring the quality of the material. History and recognition CRB-JD was created by merging Embrapa Agrobiology's collections of cultures, which started in the 1950s, with the laboratory of bioprocesses and inoculant quality analysis. It is part of the CRB-Agribusiness, whose global structure is one of Embrapa's responsibilities for the Brazilian Network of Biological Resource Centers. In 2016, Embrapa Agrobiology had already obtained from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply (Mapa) the accreditation for the laboratory of inoculant quality control analysis and another to be an establishment that produces inoculants. This year, a ministerial ordinance granted the Embrapa unit the status of Official Collection to meet industry demands for the product. According to the heads of the unit and with CRB-JD's coordinators, the expectation is that the new infrastructure will make advances in the conservation of microorganisms possible and especially facilitate research and business with the production sector. The research will involve the prospection of microorganisms and molecules with biotechnological potential for agriculture, the development of bioprocesses - such as new formulations - and studies on microbial taxonomy. According to the researcher Jerri Zilli, CRB-JD's curator, there is also an intention to promote the training of students and industry professionals in the production of inoculants, bioprocesses, conservation, and microbial characterization. “Moreover, we intend to offer analyses of inoculant quality, as per Mapa's regulations, and the production of inoculants for research, for the diffusion of technologies, and, eventually, to meet smallholders' demands”, he explained. The general head of the unit adds that, with the new structure, they expect to fill gaps in the research or the technological development of new bioinputs for agriculture, contributing to the progress of the bioeconomy in the country. “The main differential will be closer ties with the production sector, with the aim of exchanging knowledge and experience to solve problems in the national agriculture, through public-private partnerships”, Xavier asserted. The CRB-JD's website is also already online, and it includes the list of the many services the center provides. Homage to Avílio Franco Former researcher and former general head of Embrapa Agrobiology, the agronomic engineer Avílio Franco was paid homage during the CRB-JD's inauguration ceremony. The building that now hosts the laboratory complex was named after the researcher, who has remained active to date, even after decades dedicated to research at Embrapa, terms at the board of Research and Development of the institution and at the board of the area of Institutes and Technological Research at Finep (Studies and Projects Financing Agency), among other roles. “I was born back in the woods, so living through this story was great challenge. In the beginning, we were a grain of sand in the beach, but today we are an internationally recognized center”, Franco reported on the relevance of Embrapa Agrobiology for BNF technology. Born in Cachoeiro de Itapemerim, Espírito Santo, he joined Embrapa as a student in 1966. “This is my home. Needless to talk about the people who are here today, giving continuity to the studies to the benefit of farmers”, he reinforced. The deputy head of Research and Development, Maria Elizabeth Correia, could not agree more with the homage to Franco: “The most valuable lesson that I learned from Avílio was the enthusiasm and the dedication to research, the joy from each small discovery, as daily challenges are overcome. I will never forget that. Avílio is synonymous with optimism, perseverance, love, joy, and love to public service.” Besides the researcher Avílio Franco and the executive director Ladislau Martin Neto, other participants in CRB-JD's inauguration ceremony included the mayor of Seropédica, Anabal Barbosa de Souza; Faperj's director of technology, Eliete Bouoskela; the head and deputy head of Pesagro-RJ, Marineide of Cunha Pampolha and Maria Luiza de Araújo; the head of Flona Mário Xavier, Ricardo Nogueira; Solon Araújo, biological products consultant from Stoller - Brazil ; the general head Embrapa Soils, Daniel Vidal Perez; and the researcher Marcos José de Oliveira Fonseca, from Embrapa Food Technology, representing the general head of the Unit, among other guests. Johanna Döbereiner Embrapa Agrobiology's Biological Resource Center is named after the researcher Johanna Döbereiner, the main person responsible for the establishment of the unit and for the beginning of studies on biological nitrogen fixation in the world. “The BNF technology, which is responsible for enormous savings in the Brazilian soybean production, originated from Embrapa Agrobiology, from pioneering work initiated by Johanna. It was a propeller that has been stimulating research to date”, pointed the general head of unit Gustavo Xavier. The retired researcher Avílio Franco added: “Without Johanna, we would not be here, we would still be that grain of sand in the beach. And what we have today is the fruit of the work and the dedication of all of those who have worked here throughout the last 50 years.” Johanna received countless awards and honours in life and even posthumous ones. She led research at the then Institute of Ecology and Agricultural Experimentation of the National Agronomic Research Service - the precursor of Embrapa Agrobiology - and was head of the unit. In a century in which agriculture posed challenges and the male presence was a rule, she was the exception. By instituting the use of microorganisms and leveraging tropical agriculture, and thus lending new breath to the struggle for competitiveness against major markets, she etched her name in history. Her contribution transformed Brazil into the second largest soybean producer, only behind the United States. She passed away in 2000 from a neurological disease.