Berlin, 21 October 2010 – Every person has the right to access food. However, this right is one of the least respected in the world. Currently about half a billion people worldwide suffer from hunger. By 2050 the world’s population will have reached nine billion, increasing the global challenges facing agriculture and the food industry. Against this backdrop the key theme of the Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA), which takes place from 20 to 22 January 2011, is “Commerce and ensuring food supplies at global, regional and local levels“.
The GFFA has been held at Green Week in Berlin since 2009, and represents an international platform for examining the issues crucial to the future of ensuring global food supplies. The forum is unique, because agriculture ministers from around the world meet with agriculture and food industry leaders as well as representatives of science and everyday society to discuss the problems, and to jointly develop new approaches in order to overcome the forthcoming global challenges.
Summit of Agriculture Ministers and International Agriculture Ministers’ Panel Discussion
The Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (BMELV) is organising the following two highly important political GFFA events, to be held on 22 January 2011: the International Agriculture Ministers’ Panel Discussion, which will take place in the ICC Berlin, and the Summit of Agriculture Ministers, which will be held in the “Weltsaal” at the German Foreign Office.
In the morning ministers from India, Russia, Ethiopia, the USA and Germany, as well as EU Agricultural Commissioner Dr. Dacian Ciolo, will be stating their views and answering questions from members of the public at the International Agriculture Ministers’ Panel Discussion. WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy is due to give an introductory speech. In the afternoon the agriculture ministers from around the world are invited to take part in the 3rd Berlin Summit of Agriculture Ministers. They will be discussing their own experiences and ideas on the role that commerce occupies in the context of global food supplies.
Both events have a fundamental objective: to make society more aware of how significant commerce and an integrated trade system are for ensuring global food supplies and people’s right to access food. This joint discussion will also provide commerce and global food supplies with a new impetus. One of the main issues is how one can combine the benefits of local added value, regional cooperation and global integration. Establishing fair rules for the market is a decisive criterion, and this too is an issue requiring an international solution.
International Business Panel
Parallel with the Summit of Agriculture Ministers the International Business Panel will also be taking place. The topic is “From Farmers to Consumers – Business Initiatives for Sustainable Value Chains“. Key GFFA themes are once again in the foreground. The focus is on the significance of local value chains in threshold and developing countries, with a reminder that greater sustainability is needed in agriculture and the food industry. Successful economic initiatives and examples of best practices will also be presented.
An evening reception organised by the German agriculture and food industry for international guests from politics and industry will round off the evening at Deutsche Telekom’s representation in the German capital.
Expert panel discussions and joint venture exchange
On Thursday, 20 Jan. and Friday, 21 Jan. 2011, expert and regional panel discussions focusing on themes and regions spanning the entire globe will host a broad range of events dealing with development trends and strategies for tackling agriculture and food industry issues. A joint venture exchange involving companies, associations and institutions will also be taking place .
The GFFA is co-sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection, the Berlin Senate, Messe Berlin, the Federal Association of the German Food and Drink Industries, the German Farmers' Association, the German Agricultural Society, the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ), the Eastern Committee of German Industry, and by the organisers of the expert panel discussions. Additional information is available at www.gffa-berlin.de.
Source: Messe Berlin