Information about soils in Latin America and the Caribbean is scarce and outdated, according to a senior soils officer for the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) based in Santiago, Chile.

Jan VanWambeke says the issues of soil degradation and land resources are not sufficiently studied in the region, yet they directly affect 150 million Latin Americans and Caribbean people.

He is calling on governments to deal with these challenges during the International Year of Soils in 2015.

Sandra Ferrari spoke with Mr VanWambeke and began by asking him to describe the importance of soil to the region.

Duration: 4’42”