On Wednesday 27th and Thursday 28th January, AREPO participated in the conference, organised by the European Commission with the aim to present and discuss with the stakeholders the EU strategic approach to agricultural research and innovation.
Commissioner Phil Hogan opened the main conference on 27 January afternoon, stating that research and innovation will play a vital role in improving the future prospects of the agricultural sector and rural areas.
Following the Commissioner’s introduction, the Director General of DG AGRI Jerzy Plewa described the main point of the strategic agenda. The strategy focuses on land-based primary production, centred around agriculture and forestry, but also extends to food and non-food chains and the rural economy. In particular, close links will be established with research and innovation in the food area.
The consultative process with the stakeholders involved helped to identified five priority areas for research and innovation, clustered in two headings. The first heading on sustainable primary production includes (1) resource management, (2) plants and animal health and (3) integrated ecological approaches from farm to landscape level. The second heading on enhancing rural innovation takes in (4) new openings for rural growth and (5) enhancing the human and social capital in rural areas.
During the plenary sessions and of rounds of parallel sessions, the speakers interacted with the stakeholders in the audience to discuss how the strategy should be implemented. The European Commission will take on board stakeholders feedbacks and contributions in order to finalise the strategic document.
Find here the flyer summarizing the above-mentioned draft paper.
For conference’s presentations and videos consult the following link.
