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Innovation essential for food and ag growth: Rabobank

Global Agribusiness bank, Rabobank says that innovation is essential to achieving growth within food and agriculture.

In its 2014 flagship report, “Unleashing the Potential for Global F&A – A Call for Innovation and Leadership,” Rabobank says that a stronger focus on innovation will provide a bridge between near-term challenges and longer term opportunities within the global food and agricultural space.

The report argues that through innovation, global food and agriculture will be able to essentially achieve more with less – that is to increase food availability and improve access, with minimal environmental impacts. The report also stressed that leadership will be the single most important tool in overcoming challenges and realising the opportunities.

“This leadership will come from CEOs of global and local F&A companies, from investors in global F&A, from scientists with the ability to promote new and improved technologies and practices, from government experts, from NGOs, from international networks, and from international commercial and institutional banks. Where these leaders sit is not what sets them apart – it is their vision, the way they drive the case for change and their ability to inspire action that differentiates them.” says Wiebe Draijer, Rabobank executive board chairman.

The report also argues that harnessing innovation requires mindset shift to accept change. Rabobank says that although global food and agriculture has experienced much change over the past decade, there is still a degree of reluctance to accept how the industries must change in order to successfully respond to the constraints that come with capitalising on long-term opportunities.

In order to achieve this, Rabobank developed ten big ideas aimed at boosting global food availability and improving access to food over the next decade.

Rabobank's 10 big ideas: 
1. Adopt big data in US agriculture 
2. Close the yield gap in Central and Eastern Europe 
3. Improve China's food security 
4. Strengthen South-South trade 
5. Invest in local storage 
6. Boost production in the food and agriculture engine room 
7. Develop cold chains in China 
8. Grow aquaculture 
9. Lift dairy production in India 
10. Raise sugarcane's productivity

Draijer says that while there are some significant hurdles ahead, Rabobank is positive about the sector, and confident in the ability of global F&A to rise to the challenge.

 

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