Aidan O’Driscoll, Secretary General of the Department of Agriculture, will deliver the keynote address at this year’s ASA Conference.
The conference on ‘Building Agri – Promoting growth in a climate of change’ will be addressed by food industry executives, economists and scientists from the US, Europe and Ireland.
The ASA Conference takes place at the Lyrath Hotel, Kilkenny on Friday September 11.
Topics to be debated at the 2015 conference include the climate change challenge and the recently published Food Wise 2025 Strategy.
Cork born Gordon Hardie from global agribusiness and food company Bunge with annual sales of almost $60 billion is travelling from New York while Hugh McGuire, Chief Executive of Glanbia Performance Nutrition is travelling from Chicago, organisers say.
Analyst at Rabobank, Kevin Bellamy, will give ASA delegates the latest picture of global commodity price trends.
John Moloney, Chairman of the Agri-food Strategy Committee will lead a debate on the new Food Wise 2025 Strategy.
There will also be a discussion on adding value to food involving a high level panel of Kevin Lane, Chief Executive Ornua, Kevin Cahill, Chief Executive Kepak meat division, Prof. Dolores O’Riordan, Director of the UCD Institute of Food and Health and leading food industry Analyst Joe Gill from Goodbody.
The conference will also examine how Irish farmers and food producers can navigate the climate change challenge with a panel consisting of outspoken Trinity College Economist Prof. Alan Matthews, leading Teagasc Scientist Dr. Rogier Schulte, Prof. Charles Sabel from Columbia Law School in New York, Jaap Petraeus from FrieslandCampina in Utrecht, Padraig Brennan, Bord Bia and Kevin Tuck, Alltech.
FBD is again ASA’s partner in this major national conference, for the 15th consecutive year.