THE BUSINESS CASE FOR OPENING DATA FOR AGRICULTURE & NUTRITION

GODAN (GLOBAL OPEN DATA FOR AGRICULTURE & NUTRITION) TO SPOTLIGHT HOW THE PRIVATE SECTOR CAN CREATE VALUE THROUGH OPEN DATA AT GFIA EUROPE
9th – 10th May 2017 in Utrecht, The Netherlands

• GODAN is convinced that the solution to world food security lies within existing, but often unavailable, agriculture and nutrition data. GODAN’s goal is to make all agriculture and nutrition data open - available, accessible and usable – for better policy and decision making.

• Through partnering with the Global Forum of Innovation in Agriculture (GFIA) Europe GODAN seeks to demonstrate the business case and return on investment for private sector organisations through opening data on agriculture and nutrition, for better business management, innovation, profitability and social good.

• Open innovation, including open data, is figuring more prominently in food and agricultural businesses' strategies as is the conversation around pre-competitive spaces and how they may benefit all.

WALLINGFORD, 25th April, 2017: The Global Open Data for Agriculture & Nutrition (GODAN) initiative, launched in 2013 and led by the UK and US governments to propagate for open data in agriculture and nutrition to scientifically combat world hunger and food security, is partnering with the Global Forum of Innovation in Agriculture (GFIA) Europe, the world's largest dedicated expo of sustainable agriculture solutions, in Utrecht, Netherlands on the 9th and 10th of May 2017.

GFIA, which launched in 2014 by the Abu Dhabi government, seeks to leverage partnerships with the world’s powerful organisations including the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the UN, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the World Bank, to show the world how technology gives us the only real chance of feeding nine billion people without destroying the environment. The European edition of the GFIA will host the Agtech Leaders’ Summit to support government, industry and science as hundreds of experts convene to find new ways to ensure sufficient, competitive, safe, and sustainable food production.

Open innovation, including open data, is figuring more prominently in food and agricultural businesses' strategies as is the conversation around pre-competitive spaces and how they may benefit all. Through a partnership with GFIA, GODAN will showcase stories of the impact and value of open data in agriculture, food and nutrition for businesses to help them make profitable strategic decisions. GODAN will also explore how open data and standards can foster open innovation and collaborative research as has been seen in other industries.

André Laperrière Executive Director, GODAN will be a keynote speaker during the opening and closing session of GFIA on 10th May. André will participate in the opening session titled “Visionaries Shaping the Future Agriculture Innovation Landscape”. Europe is home to major food and agriculture companies, and research institutions. The Netherlands is the second largest food exporter in the world and has long been a world-class leader in innovation and research in agriculture, continuing to pioneer new approaches and technologies. This session is an opportunity to hear the vision of individuals pushing the agriculture innovation agenda to the next level to enable competitive and sustainable food production.

GODAN, with the support of the GFIA Secretariat and the Global Partnerships Forum, will also organise a VIP banquet and networking event focusing on two key themes: ‘Why open data is good for business’, and ‘What role can pre-competitive spaces play’. The event will bring together high level individuals from the sector including CEOs, CFOs, and CIOs, governments, universities/research institutions, and NGOs to stimulate the conversation around the business case for opening data and how open innovation and pre-competitive spaces may benefit all. The event will highlight experiences from major global corporations, as well as Dutch industry examples to take full advantage of the forum taking place in the Netherlands.

From its inception, GODAN has focused its efforts on building high-level support among governments, policymakers, international organizations and business. GODAN comprises of over 500 partners, including The Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs in The Netherlands, the USDA (US Department of Agriculture) in the USA, DFID (Department for International Development), DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs) and the Open Data Institute in the UK. GODAN funding partners include USAID (United States Agency for International Development) in the USA. GODAN was endorsed by G7 world leaders at the G7 Summit in 2016 and supported by the United Nations.

Speaking about the partnership between GODAN and GFIA and the urgent need for the private sector to collaborate in the open data space, André Laperrière Executive Director, GODAN, said: “Achieving world food security through sustainable agriculture is one of the biggest challenges of our time as enshrined in the ‘Sustainable Development Goals’. Open data - data that anyone can access, use or share - can help shape solutions by enabling more efficient and effective decision-making at multiple levels across the agricultural value chain, fostering innovation via new services and applications, and driving organisational change through transparency.

Large amounts of data are collected and generated by governments to develop and monitor policies and stimulate developments. By publishing this data as open data and stimulating the use and uptake by the sector, we can improve different areas: empowering farmers, optimising agricultural practice, stimulating rural finance, facilitating the agri value chain, enforcing policies, and promoting government transparency and efficiency. We are therefore reaching out to businesses and the private sector to demonstrate the scope and credibility open data offers as a strong tool for business innovation, productivity and profitability.”

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Notes to Editors:

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About Global Open Data for Agriculture & Nutrition
GODAN supports the proactive sharing of open data to make information about agriculture and nutrition available, accessible and usable to deal with the urgent challenge of ensuring world food security. It is a rapidly growing group, currently with over 500 partners from national governments, non-governmental, international and private sector organisations that have committed to a joint Statement of Purpose.

The initiative focuses on building high-level support among governments, policymakers, international organizations and business. GODAN promotes collaboration and cooperation among stakeholders in the sector to harness the growing volume of data generated by new technologies to solve long-standing problems and to benefit farmers and the health of consumers.

The United Nations is a key supporter of GODAN’s mission, with the initiative working closely with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and its Economic and Social Development Department, as well as a number of other UN affiliated organisations that advocate international development and open data.

GODAN also organised the largest-ever event dedicated to open data in agriculture and nutrition, in 2016 in New York on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York in September.

GODAN recently launched the Agriculture Open Data Package (AgPack) which provides a roadmap for governments, suggesting 6 policy and 14 key data categories where open data can support the agricultural sector. For more information: www.godan.info

GFIA Europe 2017
The world's largest dedicated expo of sustainable agriculture solutions

When GFIA was launched in 2014 at the invitation of the Abu Dhabi government, it leveraged partnerships with 40 powerful organisations including the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the World Bank, that wanted a platform to show the world how technology gives us the only real chance of feeding nine billion people without destroying the environment.

Now an internationally acclaimed annual event in Abu Dhabi, GFIA is the world's largest showcase of sustainable agriculture innovations. It is not only a forum for stakeholders to discuss policy, strategy and solutions for a food secure future, but hosts a large exhibition where suppliers can meet thousands of farmers and procurement managers right along the value chain.

The GFIA team that delivered the largest agriculture event in the Middle East in 2016 will be bringing GFIA Europe to the Netherlands for the first time from 9–10 May 2017. For more information: www.gfiaeurope.com

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