The Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute (CAPI) and Centre for Agri-Food Benchmarking are set to host Canadian Agri-Food in a Sustainable World, a two-day conference to be held on October 2 and 3, 2024 at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Ontario. The conference will address sustainability in the context of agri-food, how the sector should balance economic productivity with environmental sustainability, and how agri-food policy should be revamped to address sustainability.  

The first day (Oct. 2) will comprise of fireside chats and panel discussions to consider tensions, challenges, and opportunities for sustainability in the context of the agri-food sector. The second day (Oct. 3) will be hosted by the Centre for Agri-Food Benchmarking and will focus on rapidly changing ESG (environmental, social, and governance) requirements and what these mean for stepping up sustainability reporting across the agri-food sector with an emphasis on the role that the National Index may play in enabling this response.  

Key sessions will foster dialogue and debate about international actions, perspectives from other sectors, competing views on sustainability, policy, politics and strategy.  

The conference will feature prominent speakers from across the agri-food sector including: 

• -  Justine Hendricks, President and CEO of Farm Credit Canada (FCC). Ms. Hendricks will be featured as a panelist during the opening fireside chat titled Setting the Scene: Canada’s Challenges and Opportunities in Feeding the World Sustainably which will kick off day 1 of Canadian Agri-Food in a Sustainable World. 
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• -  Lloyd Day, Deputy Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA). Mr. Day will be featured alongside Ms. Hendricks as a panelist during the opening fireside chat. 
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• -  Alanna Koch, Board Chair of the Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS). Ms. Koch will participate in Panel 3: The Politics of Sustainability on the first day of the conference. 

The conference will be attended by stakeholders across the ag sector including leaders in ag-policy, agribusiness, government, academia, and civil society. With the conference less than a month away, registration is filling up quickly. The early bird registration deadline ends Wednesday, Sept. 18, after which full conference rates will apply. To see the conference program including speakers, sponsors, and agenda, and to register visit the event webpage.  

CAPI and the Centre for Agri-Food Benchmarking thanks the following organizations for sponsoring Canadian Agri-Food in a Sustainable World:   

• -  Farm Credit Canada (FCC)  
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• -  Protein Industries Canada (PIC)  
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• -  MNP  
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• -  Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance (CAFTA)  
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• -  Aquanty  
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• -  ALUS  
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• -  The Global Forum for Farm Policy and Innovation (GFFPI)  
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• -  CropLife Canada 

Source:  Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute September 9, 2024 news release