Programme

Monday 3rd December 2007 19.30-22.00

Welcome reception at the IFOAM EU Group office, Rue du Commerce 124, Brussels

Welcome note:

• Francis Blake, President of the IFOAM EU Group
• Mrs. Dormal Marino, Deputy Director General for Rural Development, DG Agriculture

Followed by tasting of 'organic wines' and snacks

Tuesday 4th December 2007

Morning Session - Room Galileo, 8th floor.

Session I:

Review of the European Action Plan on Organic Food and Farming

Moderator: Marco Schlueter, Director, IFOAM EU Group 

• Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development: “After the EU Organic Action Plan, what comes next?”  (speech)
• Friedrich-Wilhelm Graefe zu Baringdorf, Vice president of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural development in the European Parliament: “Organic markets – what role for farmers and trade”
• Francis Blake, president of the IFOAM EU Group: “The organic sector is maturing – how is it growing up?” (speech)

10.00 Session II:
Public goods and Policy objectives

Moderator: Johannes Nebel, organic farmer, Chair of the Commission's Advisory Group on Organic Farming

• Giacomo Ballari, CEJA President: “How can organic farming help to counteract agriculture’s ageing population?”
• Hannes Lorenzen, Agriculture Advisor in the European Parliament: “Organic production delivers major EU policy objectives”
• Arnd Spahn, Secretary General from the European Federation of Trade Unions in the Food, Agriculture and Tourism: “Organic production – an engine for jobs and dynamic development in rural areas”

10.45 Coffee break

• Urs Niggli, Director Fibl: “How much does organic food and farming mitigate climate change and deliver other public goods?” (presentation)

Discussion with plenary

12.00 Session III:
Enhancing the development of organic food and farming - the challenges ahead

Moderator: Cristina Micheloni, AIAB Scientific Board/ORWINE coordinator

• Leopold Meurens, CEO Sipal Partners S.A.: “Maintaining organic principles in a growing market” (presentation/pdf)
• Wilfrid Legg, Head of the Policies and Environment Division in the OECD Agriculture Directorate: “The role of organic farming in a changing agricultural environment - an OECD perspective” (presentation)
• Andrea Caroe, Chair of the USDA National Organic Standards Board: “Organic in the US - implications and lessons for the EU”

Discussion with plenary

13.00 Lunch (Room T.Cook, 1^st floor) and Press briefing (Room Marco Polo, 1^st floor)

14.15-17.45 Work Sessions A - E

A) Organic Production and the CAP. Session A1 and A2 (Marco Polo, ground floor)
B) Consistent policies for Organic Farming. Session B1 and B2 (Stanley, 1^st floor)
C) Research for competitive organic food and farming. Session C1 and C2 (Vasco da Gama, 1^st floor)
D) The new organic regulation. Session D1 and D2 (Galileo, 8^th floor)
E) Ethics, principles and the market. Session E1 and E2 (C. Colomb, 1^st floor)

The work sessions are divided into two sub sessions, separated by the coffee break from 15.45-16.15

It is possible to combine the sessions, eg. B1 and E2.

See detailed descriptions of the work sessions here

18:00-24:00 Evening Event

18.00 Welcome drink

18.30 Panel discussion: The rural world of tomorrow: Future Challenges of Agriculture in a changing environment

Moderator: Mette Meldgaard, IFOAM Vice President.

Panellists:

• Wilfrid Legg, Head of the Policies and Environment Division in the OECD Agriculture Directorate.
• Poul Skytte Christoffersen, Head of Cabinet of Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mariann Fischer Boel.
• Patrick Holden, Director of Soil Association, UK.
• Rasmus Kjeldahl, President of BEUC (The European Consumers' Organisation).
• Andrea Caroe, Chair of the USDA National Organic Standards Board.
• Tamas Marghescu, Regional Director for IUCN Europe

20.00 - 0.00 Gala Dinner & cultural programme

Wednesday 5th December 2007 (8^th floor, room: Galileo)

9.00   ~    Bach Prelude - Eugen Schwabauer, accordionist   ~

9.10   Welcome note and moderation: Gerald Hermann, IFOAM President

• Ladislav Miko, Director Directorate B Protecting the Natural Environment, DG Environment “EU environmental policy –impact on and the role of organic production”. (presentation)
  

9.50 Reporting of the results of the work sessions. 

• Work session A: Organic production and the CAP - Mette Meldgaard Vice President of IFOAM (presentation)
  
• Work session B: Consistent policies for organic farming - Benedikt Haerlin, Foundation Future Farming (presentation)
• Work session C: Research for competitive organic food and farming - Otto Schmid, Chair Research Committee of the IFOAM EU Group. (presentation)
• Work session D: The new organic regulation - Lizzie Melby Jespersen (presentation)
• Work session E: Ethics, principles and the market - Christopher Stopes, EcoS Consultancy Ltd. (presentation)

10.45 - 11.15 Coffee break

Marco Schlueter, Director, IFOAM EU Group

• Ladislav Miko, Director of Directorate B Protecting the Natural Environment
• Timothy Hall, Acting Director, Directorate E, Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries, Aquaculture.
• Julien Mousnier, Cabinet of Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Mariann Fischer Boel.
• Friedrich-Wilhelm Graefe zu Baringdorf, Vice President, Committee on Agricultural and Rural Development, European Parliament.

11.50 Discussion with plenary

13.00 Closing speech

• Francis Blake, President of the IFOAM EU-Group.
  

13.30 End of Congress & Press conference

11.15 Organic policy perspectives - reactions on work session results from the EU institutions