IFAMA 21st Annual World Forum and Symposium 

Frankfurt, Germany | June 20 - 23, 2011 The Road to 2050: Sustainability as a Business Opportunity 2011 Schedule of Symposium Research Papers

Forum Speaker Bios

FORUM DAY 1

Opening Remarks

Paul T. Jasper, President, IFAMA
Jesus Serafin Perez, President CIAA [Presentation]

Long-Term Strategies Part 1

The panelists from Sessions 2 and 3 will provide long-term visions for food and agriculture from their unique perspectives. Can the industry from a business perspective provide a sustainable approach to meeting world food demands by 2050? Can industry self-regulate and what role will governments take in the sustainability debate and implementation? As more investment flows into agriculture, will investors be satisfied with agriculture returns? Will national interests supersede the sustainability efforts?

Session Moderator:  Gerhard Schiefer, University of Bonn

Industry: Michael Mack, CEO, Syngenta [Presentation]
Food Sector: Felix Ahlers, CEO, FROSTA  [Presentation]
Commodity Trade: Dirk Bensmann, Board, Agravis  [Presentation]

Long-Term Strategies Part 2

Session Moderator: Josef Haber, Value Chain Manager, BASF

Coping with Financial Risks: Thomas Rueschen, DWS (Deutsche Bank) [Presentation]
Value Creation through Sustainability: Peer Ederer, Scientific Director, EFAS [Presentation]
Long-Term Vision for Financing: Carel van der Hamsvoort, Global Head for F&A Research and Advisory, Rabobank [Presentation]

Commodity Price Volatility: Needs and Regulation

World food prices in January 2011 surpassed the 2008 peak and are at their highest level since 1990. The effects of high food prices are significant - especially on low-income food deficit countries – diminishing supplies in some countries, sharp inflation in others and an overall negative impact on economic growth and performance in all countries. Do policy makers understand agricultural futures markets, price formation and volatility? How are food industry companies handling the volatility? Does industry need more regulation? Is there too much or not enough speculation?

Session Moderator: Francesco Braga, Assoc. Professor, and University of Guelph Francis Declerck, Assoc. Professor, Essec Business School

Andreas Rickmers , Vice President Europe, Cargill International SA
Sascha Siegel, Vice President Product Dev. Eurex Frankfurt AG
Carole L. Brookins, Managing Director, Public Capital Advisors
Jacob R. Robbins, Managing Director, Global Sweeteners, Coca Cola Company

Private Standards Versus Public Regulations

Prof. Ray Goldberg projected during the 20th IFAMA Forum, that standards and certification will become the most growing service sector of the next decade. While retailers push for more standard compliance through certification, many food companies and governments focus more on capacity building and regulation. Will we see a competition of approaches which culminate into a nightmare for the food sector, or is the global food system able to converge in its efforts to transmit sustainability objectives throughout the supply chain?

Session Moderator: Kristian Moeller, Managing Director, GlobalGAP and

Antoine Meyer, Head of New Business, Crop Protection, BASF
Johann Züblin, Head of Standards and Social Compliance, Migros Bund
Martina Fleckenstein, Director of EU Policy, WWF [Presentation]
Peter Funk, General Manager, SGF International
Christoph Guenther, Head Business Development, Nutritional IngredientsEurope, BASF  [Presentation]

Value Creation Through Sustainability

A fundamental shift in corporate strategies occurring globally is the belief that greater social, economic and environmental responsibility is good for business. This session examines how to grow Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability from a compliance based risk mitigation effort into a business opportunity for sustainable growth and value creation. Using the EFAS FrieslandCampina CSR Business Case, participants will have an opportunity to discuss the challenges and opportunities of climbing the CSR value curve.

Session Moderator: Peer Ederer, Scientific Director, EFAS

Kees Wantenaar, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Royal FrieslandCampina

The Sovena Group

In less than 10 years Sovena Group has changed dramatically, from a local Portuguese food manufacturer to become the second biggest bottler of olive oil in the world. Yet, many questions and challenges lie ahead: How to consolidate and improve Sovena’s leadership position? Should Sovena concentrate on growing the private label business or should it focus on developing strong consumer brands? Which world markets and strategies should be a priority? This session will use the case method to discuss Sovena’s strategic challenges.

Session Moderator: Jose Antonio Boccherini, Director of the Agribusiness Department at Instituto San Telmo

Feedback from Focus and Panel Discussion Sessions

Session Moderator:  Henk van Latesteijn, CEO, TransForum

Forum Day 2

Policy and Governance Part 1

Session 6 and 7 examine the policy and governance side of the agricultural sustainability debate. Can the agriculture industry provide strong leadership and input into the governance debate? Will national interests trump sustainability efforts? Are there vulnerable areas in the food chain given the rapid changes and demands on the food and agriculture industry? The second day of the forum addresses some of these issues.

Session Moderator: Harald von Witzke, Humboldt University of Berlin

EU Farmer Perspective: Shelby Matthews, Chief Policy Advisor, Copa-Cogeca  [Presentation]
EU Policy Vision: Martin Scheele, Environment Unit Head, EU Directorate Ag & Rural Development  [Presentation]
The Global Perspective: Wilfrid Legg, OECD, Former Head of Agricultural Policies and Environment Division  [Presentation]

Policy and Governance Part 2

Session Moderator:  Harald von Witzke, Humboldt University of Berlin

Assuring Production Resources: Derek Byerlee, formerly World Bank
Competitiveness Challenges for Small and Medium Agro-Enterprises: Ralph Christy, Cornell University

Concurrent Sessions

Competitiveness Challenges for Small and Medium Agro-Enterprises (SMAEs)

Survival can be precarious for SMAEs caught between pro-small farmer government policies and large companies (with market and political power, resources and know-how). Yet, SMAEs account for a large and growing share of agricultural sector value addition and employment in developing regions. What specific challenges are SMAE business managers facing? Are these the same in different regions? What initiatives are they taking to overcome the disadvantages? The SMAE business managers in this roundtable will give us a glimpse of the challenges they face and their business strategies for growth and survival.

Session Moderator:  Doyle Baker, Chief, Rural Infrastructure and Agro-Industries Division Agriculture and Consumer Protection Depart. Carlos da Silva, Agribusiness Economist, Rural Infrastructure and Agro-Industries Division, FAO

Roumen Ivanov Simov, President, Board of Directors, Solvex Mira Frukt
Claudia Barriere De Melara, General Manager, Productos La Canasta S.A De CV
Helena Del Rosario, General Manager, Soyuz Foods International Inc.
Maria Odido, Managing Director, Bee Natural Uganda Ltd.

Business Governance

How can we efficiently organize a food supply chain? How does supply chain design contribute to the cost efficiency of production and the quality and safety of food products? Managers from some of Europe's leading meat companies share their insights into the governance of meat chains with the audience. How will partnerships with customers and suppliers develop in the future? How does the governance of supplier relationships contribute to food safety? How do meat companies meet the ever growing challenges with regard to the sustainability of food supply chains?

Session Moderator:  Ludwig Theuvsen, Professor, University of Göttingen; [Presentation]
Onno Omta, Professor, Wageningen University
Bert Urlings, Director Quality Assurance, VION Food Group  [Presentation]
Christoph Willers, Director, Institute for Sustainable Management
Rainer Kühl, Professor, University of Gießen

Assuring and Managing Scarce Resources

Land markets are suffering a deep reorganization on a global basis. Who are the players controlling this reorganization? The expansion of the agriculture worldwide and the growth of the urban areas have an impact on the amount of land available and the prices to access this resource. How does the control of land by foreign governments impact food production for a country? Investment funds are available to buy land in different parts of the world. Does this mean significant increases in arable land values?

Session Moderator: Decio Zylbersztajn, Professor, University of Sao Paulo and Jacques Trienekens, Assoc. Professor, Wageningen University

Gustavo Grobocopatel, President, Los Grobos
Julio Toledo Piza, Board Member, BrasilAgro

Case Study

YUM! China

As China's middle class grows, so does its appetite for different food choices. Yum is the parent of KFC and Pizza Hut. By sheer number of units, it is the largest restaurant company in the world. In China alone, it has over 3,800 restaurants and is opening one new store every 18 hours. What does a middle class of 800 million people in China by 2025 hold fora fast-food enterprise like Yum? How will China deal with food safety, food security, sustainability, and obesity issues? Can Yum position itself as a healthy place to eat in China? Mary Shelman, Harvard Business School and 2011-2013 IFAMA President, will set the stage for the upcoming 2012 IFAMA Conference that will be held in Shanghai.

Session Moderator: Mary Shelman, Director Agribusiness Program, Harvard Business School  [Case Study]

Feedback from Focus and Panel Discussion Sessions

Henk van Latesteijn will facilitate moderators and invited panelists as they recap the day's essential takeaways from each concurrent small group discussion.

Session Moderator: Henk van Latesteijn, CEO, TransForum

Hot Topic Session

This session provides an opportunity to identify and forecast the current and future trends impacting the global food system. It will assess how acute the issues are and what alternatives are available to resolve them. Further, strategies for management of the issues will be discussed and how companies can position themselves to address the challenges and remain competitive.

Session Moderator: Carole L. Brookins, Managing Director, Public Capital Advisors

Forum Wrap-Up and Presidential Transition

Paul T. Jasper, IFAMA President 2009-2011
Mary Shelman, IFAMA President 2011-2013