Schedule 2014

 

AgroForum Balticum – Free Fair Agricultural Trade

21st – 24th April 2014

Venue: Estonian University of Life Sciences (EMU); Assembly Hall, Kreutzwaldi St. 1, Tartu

Language: English and Russian are the official languages of the conference. 

Conference can be seen as a recording at: http://video.emu.ee/agrofoorum2014.html

Conference presentations can be found on the left-hand menu. 

 

21. April

Arrival in Tartu 

 

22. April

Excursions. Start at 10.00 next to Town Hall in the city centre. Back in Tartu at 19.00. Lunch is included. Excursions are free of charge for conference participants. (See more detailed information here.) 

Option 1:

Lake Peipus region - Grüne Fee gardening farm, "Peipsi onion route", Kolkja village, Alatskivi manor, Kallaste (Russian old believers' prayer houses)

Option 2:

Setomaa region - (Setomaa is in the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity) - Männiku farm (dairy), Värska town, Obinitsa village (centre of Setomaa culture).

 

20.00  Reception in Tartu Town Hall, welcome by Mayor of Tartu 

 

23. April

Conference  (EMU main building assembly hall, Kreutzwaldi 1A, Tartu) 

8.30 - 9.30 Registration and welcome coffee

9.30 - 12.30 Opening plenary

Welcome by Estonian Minister of Agriculture and EMU Rector

Moderator: Mr Raivo Vare, entrepreneur, former state minister of Estonia

Keynote speeches:

10.00-10.15 World Trade Organisation (WTO) - Deputy Director-General Mr David P. Shark, "Multilateralism, WTO and the future world trade"

10.15-10.35 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) - Assistant Director-General Mr Vladimir O. Rakhmanin "Agricultural Trade in Europe and Central Asia: a View from FAO" 

10.35-10.55 European Commission - Head of Unit of Analaysis of trade and international policies Mr Willi Schulz-Greve "Development and Prospects of EU and Eastern Neighbouring Countries’ Trade Relations" 

10.55-11.25 Coffee break 

11.25-11.35 Minister of Agriculture and food of Ukraine Mr Igor Shvaika, "Prospects of Agriculture in Ukraine"

11.35-12.00 Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food of Belarus Mr Vassili Sedin  "Development and Export Potential of Agroindustrial Complex in Belarus: Volume, Price and Restrictions of Trade"

12.00-12.30 Chairman of the Board of SEB Bank Estonia, Mr Riho Unt, "Financing of Agricultural Sector in the Baltics"

12.30 - 13.30 Lunch 

13.30 - 15.30 Workgroups (respective rooms), plenary continues (Group 3; Kreutzwaldi 1A, assembly hall)

Group 1 - Heads of official delegations - Forestry building (Kreutzwaldi 5)

Moderator: Mr Ivari Padar, Estonian Minister of Agriculture

  • Self-sufficiency, export potential, utilization of resources, preservation of the environment
  • Insurance against disasters and market collapse
  • Reforming policies
  • Trade restrictions
  • Subsidized inputs
  • Role of strategies

Group 2 - Entrepreneurs - Institute of Technology (Kreutzwaldi 56)

  • Agricultural trade issues (TTIP, WTO, EU-Russia etc)

Moderator: Mr Roomet Sõrmus, Chairman of Estonian Chamber of Agriculture and Commerce

Speakers:

  • Mr Bart Van Belleghem, Managing Director of European Association of Dairy Trade (EUCOLAIT) "Prospects of Free Trade Negotiations Between EU and US"
  • Mr Steen Nørgaard Madsen, Member of the Board of Directors at Arla Foods; Chairman of the Danish Dairy Board; Member of the chairmanship at the Danish Agriculture and Food Council "ARLA Experiences on Eastern Market" 
  • Mr Andres Oopkaup, President of Estonian Chamber of Agriculture and Commerce; Director General of Statistics Estonia "Developments of Estonian Foreign Trade" 
  • Mr Detlef Kurreck, vice president of Farmers Union of Mecklenburg Vorpommern "International Agricultural Trade, a Chance for European Farmers" 

Group 3 - Universities and research institutions - Main building, assembly hall

Moderator: Prof. Rando Värnik, Estonian University of Life Sciences

Speakers:

  • Prof. Vasily Nechaev (rector of Russian State Agrarian University) "Increase of the Agrarian Education Efficiency in Conditions of Russian Federation Entry into WTO"
  • Mr Aki Koponen (Director of Centre for Collaborative Research at Turku School of Economics) "Urbanization and the Future of Food Production"
  • Prof. Konstantinos Karantininis (professor of Business Administration, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences) "Organizational Dynamics and Competitiveness of European Agri-food Value Chains – a Nordic Perspective"
  • Prof. Victor Efimov (rector of Saint-Petersburg State Agrarian University) "Supply and Demand in the Context of Globalization. Human Needs"

 

15.30 - 16.00 Coffee break

16.00 - 17.30 Sum-up plenary (main building assembly hall) - conclusions; reports of roundtables, chairs’ summary

Moderator: Mr Raivo Vare, entrepreneur, former state minister of Estonia

19.00 - 22.00 Conference dinner (Restaurant Atlantis)

 

24. April 

Conference continues (EMU main building, Kreutzwaldi 1A, Tartu)

8.30 - 9.00 Registration and welcome coffee 

9.00 - 12.00 Closing plenary (main building, assembly hall)

  • Vision and future of agriculture

Moderator: Mr Ülle Jaakma, vice rector of research of EMU

Mr Jaanus Murakas (Chairman of the Management Board of dairy company E-piim) "Trade in the results of applied research"

Mr Ivari Padar, Estonian Minister of Agriculture, "Future vision of free and fair trade"

Mr Linnar Priimägi (Associate Professor of Advertising Studies, Tallinn University) "Terror of trade"

Ms Ivika Nõgel (Manager of Development Center of Võru County) "Back to the countryside. Can we stop population outflow from our rural areas" 

 

11.20 - 12.00 Coffee break and walk to the fair.

12.00 Opening of the Agricultural fair 2014. Visit to the fair. 

Departure