• Venue: Hall 1 at Cibus International Food Exhibition, Viale delle Esposizioni, 393A, Parma, Italy
• Registration for the event is required to participate
• Both events will be held in Italian
• World Food Forum website

To access the full conference programme, please download the attachment below.

Italy represents an international excellence in food, thanks to the biodiversity that characterises the country and the historically developed ability to transform agricultural products into high-nutritional, high-quality, and economically valuable foods. The agri-food sector is one of the strengths of Made in Italy internationally and is essential to maintaining this leadership role, preserving and developing a safe, sustainable, and high-quality food supply chain, increasingly attentive to production autonomy and food sovereignty in terms of raw materials.

The production of food on our planet meets a growing demand for quantity and quality. At the forefront of global interest remains the problem of how to properly feed a rapidly growing population, respecting the planet we live on and from which we draw finite resources, in connection with the primary objectives of the UN's 2030 agenda. The ability to extend and support a global agri-food system is limited by various risks and challenges, both globally and locally, and is threatened by crises caused by the difficult geopolitical situation and ongoing conflicts.

The ability to overcome these complex challenges and meet the food expectations of future populations depends heavily on science and technology as well as on education towards an eco-sustainable food approach.

The production of safe and sustainable food for all (the right to food) must therefore be combined with the design of innovative and more sustainable product and production processes in relation to global resource scarcity and climate change, as well as attentive to ensuring the well-being and health of an increasingly heterogeneous population in terms of culture, religion, risk factors, never forgetting the social role of food and the awareness of the interrelationship between human health, animal welfare, and planetary health (One Health).

In a period of profound change, the investment projects of Mission 4 Component 2 of the PNRR represent a significant strategy for creating value and developing the competitiveness of the future national and community production and technological system.

In this context, the National Center for Technology in Agriculture Agritech, the Extended Partnership OnFoods Foundation, and the Metrofood-IT Research Infrastructure are committed to research, production, and innovation, united in pursuing the same path towards the common goal of promoting a new model of food production and healthy, safe, and sustainable nutrition.

The high quality of research in the food sector aims not only to generate technological transfer but also scientific culture, finding its natural realisation in continuous education, at all levels. Teaching, especially at the high level or directed towards professionals, must be updated and in line with the latest sectoral evidence, promoting the meeting between public and private sectors, thus the alliance between the education sectors, the production sector, and territorial governance.

The FOOD-ER project, promoted and supported by the Emilia-Romagna Region, aims to create a training and research hub recognized internationally and capable of attracting talent and resources for the development and internationalisation of the entire agri-food sector.

All these topics will be addressed in the morning, with various interventions and a round table, and will continue in the afternoon with the workshop, coordinated by the National Technological Cluster AGRIFOOD (CL.A.N), dedicated to the perspective of the companies involved in the projects. The goal is long-term sustainability, which will depend not only on the actual implementation of the planned measures but also on the degree of collaboration between Research Institutions, Companies, Institutions, and Civil Society. The CL.A.N Cluster represents a facilitator in promoting a shared path, capable of generating integrations and synergies through its Innovation Ecosystem.

On Wednesday 8th May, at 10:30 AM, CIBUS 2024 will host a high-level conference entitled "The Challenges of Food Systems’ Sustainability for Businesses and Supply Chains – A Global Approach, from Soil to Human Health". The conference will provide an opportunity to jointly analyse strategies for the sustainability of food systems in the context of the current geopolitical crisis, which is testing various ongoing transitions. Experts will examine the challenges and direct impacts on businesses, and the conclusions will be delivered by Paolo De Castro, Member of the European Parliament and Vice President of the Agriculture Committee.

At 2:00 PM, the workshop "Businesses, PNRR, Sustainability of Food Systems" will take place. The companies participating in the three PNRR projects will share their experiences with the companies present at CIBUS 2024. The workshop, coordinated by the National Technological Cluster Agrifood CL.A.N, will involve the participation of: Agrocamera, Barilla, Bolton, Bonifiche Ferraresi, CIRFOOD, De'Longhi, Irritech S.p.A, Malteria Saplo Peroni, La Molisana, Relatech S.p.A.

Visit the World Food Forum website to register to the morning conference.