Successful Organic World Congress 2021 held in France

Nearly 1800 participants online and nearly 400 in person from 50 countries participated at the 20th Organic World Congress. They were able to select from around 180 sessions. More than 300 speakers contributed to the event, including several speakers from the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL.

Several keynote speakers and politicians highlighted the role of organic food and farming:  the agricultural ministers of France (Julien Denormandie) and Denmark (Rasmus Prehn), the EU Commissioner for Agriculture (Janusz Wojciechowski) as well as Nicolas Hulot, the former French minister for the environment. The congress received strong support from IFOAM – Organics International and many sponsors.

The very special edition of this congress, with its hybrid format, both face-to-face and digital, was a challenge. It was initially planned to be held in 2020 but then postponed to September 2021. For Beate Huber, president of FiBL Europe and head of the Department of International Cooperation at FiBL, the congress was very well organised by the French local team in an appealing venue. Despite the Covid restrictions, there was a worldwide exchange between the different actors in the organic movement.

Before the World Congress, several pre-conferences were organised. FiBL was co-organiser of a successful pre-conference of the IFOAM Animal Husbandry Alliance (IAHA), focusing on "Organic Animal Husbandry Systems – Ways to improvement". Speakers from several EU research projects on organic animal husbandry participated. Proceedings and the Rennes Declaration for supporting organic animal husbandry as well as the presentations from keynote speakers can be downloaded from the IAHA Website.

For Otto Schmid, Chair of the IAHA, it was an outstanding achievement that the Rennes Declaration for organic animal husbandry, elaborated in workshops at the Pre-Conference and the Organic World Congress, was accepted as a recommendation at the General Assembly of IFOAM – Organics International. The declaration acknowledges the centrality of animals/livestock in sustainable agriculture and highlights the key priorities for supporting, developing and promoting organic animal husbandry. It emphasises that organic animal production must take place in the context of holistic systems that enhance environmental benefits and animal welfare.

FiBL was also strongly involved as co-organiser of the pre-conference "Seed Ambassadors: Building an International Network to Advance Organic Seed Systems", which was well attended. The first day led participants to demonstration fields of the French Agronomic Institute INRAE and the Technical Institute of Organic Agriculture ITAB. Using carrot and buckwheat, participants explored on-farm seed stewardship, plant breeding and culinary evaluation methodologies, including a first-hand tasting. A video of the field tour was provided for online participants. On the second day,  participants developed concrete action points through interactive and participatory workshops. The outcomes underlined the importance for agro-ecosystem and social resilience. This includes the training of seed professionals, building local and international networks as well as tackling governance and seed policy issues. These points will be further elaborated in working groups of the IFOAM Seeds Platform. The pre-conference was also an occasion to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the European Consortium for Organic Plant Breeding (ECO-PB). The Organic Seed Alliance (OSA) supported the pre-conference and accompanied online participants on the Organic Seed Commons platform  – where discussions continue also after the event has ended.

Organic Seeds Commons platform:  https://www.organicseedcommons.org/groups/5740452/feed

Video of the field tour on organic seed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLEYIUQC3ZU 

After the congress, on 13 and 14 September, the General Assembly of IFOAM – Organics International was organised as a digital event.

The General Assembly elected the new IFOAM World Board for 2021 to 2024. Karen Mapusua from Oceania (Fiji Island) is now the President of the new World Board, while Choitresh Ganguly from India and Julia Lernoud from Argentina (former FiBL collaborator) are the Vice Presidents.

Many motions were submitted, amended, and most were voted in favour. Several motions addressed the need for IFOAM – Organics International to become more active regarding biodiversity and social justice and to include more agroecology criteria in organic best practice approaches.

The General Assembly also selected Tunisia to be the host of the next Organic World Congress in 2024. Otto Schmid (FiBL) received an IFOAM award for his long-lasting engagement as chair of the IFOAM Animal Husbandry Alliance.