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On 03rd November, the Lazio region (Italy) and Zhengzhou city (China) undertook the second follow-up meeting as part of the IURC-China cooperation working sessions in Sustainable Agriculture and Agri-Food System. Two sides are committed to their cooperation on the topics of:
- Sustainable agricultural production system
- Organic agriculture
- Safe food supply system
- Local supply and regional self-production
- Circularity in agriculture
- Greenhouse gas emission measurement, soil carbon sequestration measurement
The representatives from Lazio region are from Lazio Region Vice Presidency office, Lazio Innova S.p.A., Lazio and Tuscany Institute for Animal Health and Food Safety, Agri Chamber of Commerce (Agro Camera), Lazio Regional Agency for Development and Innovation for Agriculture (ARSIAL), and the Sapienza University of Rome.
The representatives from Zhengzhou city are from the organisations of Zhengzhou Development and Reform Commission, Zhengzhou China-Europe Regional Economic Cooperation Centre, and Henan Zhongyuan Organic Agriculture Institute.
Qian WANG, the Team Leader of IURC China moderated the working session.
The representatives first reviewed the cooperation proposal. The two sides discussed the cooperation goals, topics and approaches, and agreed to prepare for MoU signing for joint actions and to formulate a new partnership.
The directions of cooperation were discussed and focused on scaling up organic farming and circularity in agriculture:
- Joint research projects on technologies for sustainable agriculture
- Information platform for sharing expert and talent pool, technical solutions, and organic agricultural products
- Knowledge exchange and training programs.
Ms. Rita Merkle, the IURC cluster manager in agriculture advised on comparative studies and research, helped to consolidate the project for carbon sequestration measurement, and further suggested potential bee-friendly farming and participatory urban agricultural programs.
Both sides agreed to jointly sign a MoU on cooperation, conduct a comparative analysis report on policy, regulation and practices of peri-urban agriculture and organic food supply, establish a demonstration field for carbon sequestration, and prepare for the delegation visits in the coming year.
Following this meeting, Lazio region and Zhengzhou city will formalise the MoU, further support consolidating the identified pilot projects, share the views of stakeholders and update about the next steps for the cooperation.
