17 Mar DECLARATION OF ABU DHABI CALLS FOR GLOBAL SUSTAINABLE FARMING
Abu Dhabi -The Global Forum for Innovations in Agriculture is gathering a senior delegation of signatories of the Declaration of Abu Dhabi for Global Food Security through Good Agricultural Practices (DecAD) to bolster the advancement of safe and sustainable farming around the world.
The panel meeting at the GFIA will include representatives from GLOBALG.A.P., Sustainable Agriculture Initiative Platform, GS1, Bayer CropScience, BelOrta and ADFCA.
The collaboration will provide updates on how its novel technological solutions can help facilitate greater harmonization among public and private initiatives, ultimately increasing worldwide adoption of safe and sustainable production practices.
Launched in the UAE capital in 2014, DecAD is a joint collaboration between governmental and intergovernmental institutions, standards owners, retailers, manufacturers, agricultural product and service providers, farmers, and farmer organizations.
The GFIA, held under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister of the UAE, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority, and in strategic partnership with ADFCA, runs from 16-17 February at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre and will feature more than 300 next-generation agricultural solutions that could shape the future of sustainable farming around the world.
Roberta J. Anderson, Secretariat for the Declaration of Abu Dhabi., said that the DecAD’s aim is not to revolutionise farming by implementing new certification standards, but to transform it and optimise the work of existing agricultural sustainability standards.
“The outcome of the DecAD work will not be a set of new standards to which growers could be certified,” she said.
“It will be a suite of technical solutions that allow for greater harmonisation among private and public standards, and a more efficient and clear process for growers seeking to advance and gain recognition for their good agricultural practices.”
For growers wishing to gain insights into the future of safe and sustainable agriculture, DecAD’s panel at the GFIA will offer an overview of some of today’s biggest barriers to the expanded use of safe and sustainable production practices, and discuss its approach for novel solutions.
The panelists will discuss the benefits of the United Nation Global Compact’s Blue Number Initiative and a new Standards Map facility from International Trade Centre.
While the Blue Number Initiative provides farmers with an online registry that encourages them to expand and showcase their sustainable farming practices and exposes them to potential buyers, Standards Map allows growers to voluntarily choose from 170 standards and build their individual business plan for sustainable trade ensuring food safety, traceability, farming biodiversity, workers’ health, safety, and animal well being.
Adhering to relevant sustainability standards subsequently allows farmers to apply for globally recognized certifications, such as GLOBALG.A.P., the world’s most widely implemented farm certification scheme promoting safe and environmentally responsible production that does not compromise human or animal welfare.
Anderson added: “DecAD’s vision for the new facility in Standards Map will allow farmers to select their desired standards and generate a single checklist of all required criteria. Potentially, Standards Map could facilitate the identification of auditor services that are qualified to perform audits to the standards represented in the checklist. The goal is reduced cost and burden for the grower.”
DecAD’s ultimate goal is to encourage safe and sustainable production practices that can provide quality food for a growing world population within the earth’s natural limitations.
Prominent DecAD signatories in retail and manufacturing on the demand side of the supply chain include ASDA/IPL, Danone, Metro Group, Morrison’s, Nestle, Pick N Pay, Unilever and Vion Food Group.
Registration to attend GFIA can be made at www.InnovationsInAgriculture.com.
GFIA is sponsored by the UAE Ministry of Presidential Affairs, Khalifa International Award for Date Palm & Agricultural Innovation, Abu Dhabi Farmers Services Centre, Emirates Food Industries, Koppert Biological Systems, AGCO, GODAN, Mato Grosso, The Rockefeller Foundation and CoolFarm and staged with the support of Masdar Institute, University of Arizona, Kingdom of The Netherlands, CTA, GlobalG.A.P, CGIAR, SAI Platform, Wageningen UR and the Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau
Caption: DecAD signatories urge farmers to use standardisation initiatives in an effort to achieve farming sustainability and global food security