IAK at the GFFA 2025: Focus on innovations for a sustainable bioeconomy

Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA)
This year's GFFA took place from Jan 16/17, 2025 in the Berlin City Cube and was held under the motto “Farming a Sustainable Bioeconomy”. Innovations in the bioeconomy are also a focus of our work. This is why the international department of IAK Agrar Consulting GmbH was once again represented at the GFFA this year: with a stand at the Innovation Forum and with all the teams of the projects carried out by IAK as part of the Bilateral Cooperation Program (BKP) of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL). In addition, the Sino-German Agricultural Center (DCZ), which we run together with the Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO), our consortium partner in the project, hosted the expert panel "Innovative Biomass Energy Technologies and their Policy Implications". The IAK also took part in other expert panels, workshops and receptions.
IAK/JKI stand at the Innovation Forum
The focus of our joint stand with our colleagues from the Julius Kühn-Institute (JKI) was on soil health – a central aspect of the BKP project German-Uruguayan Technical Agricultural Dialogue implemented by the IAK. In Component 1, Micro2Health, in cooperation with the National Agricultural Research Institute of Uruguay (INIA), is researching how soil health can be improved through the targeted use of bioinocula to promote climate-resistant cultivation systems.
We were particularly proud of the visit by high-ranking guests: Parliamentary State Secretary Claudia Müller, Uruguayan Minister of Agriculture Fernando Mattos Costa and the President of the JKI, Prof. Frank Ordon, acknowledged the importance of this bilateral dialog for sustainable agriculture and international cooperation with their presence.
The other visitors to the GFFA also showed great interest. This was an impressive demonstration of how innovative approaches can advance health in agriculture and nutrition – a strong sign of the relevance of our joint work and the future of sustainable cultivation systems.
Expert panel "Innovative Biomass Energy Technologies and their Policy Implications"
The panel discussion, organized by DCZ and IAMO, brought together top-class experts from Germany and China to discuss the potential of biomass to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote rural development. The event was moderated by Lena Kuhn, Senior Researcher at IAMO. The keynote speaker was Dr. Michaela Böhme, deputy project manager of the DCZ. The panel also included Prof. Dr. Michael Nelles, Scientific Director of the German Biomass Research Center (DBFZ), Dr. Hao Hong, Deputy Director of the China Association of Rural Energy Industry (CAREI), Liuyu Zhang, General Manager at Wanhao Energy, and Yanping Zhang, Research Associate in the Food and Natural Resources Program of the World Resources Institute (WRI) China.
The discussion highlighted innovative approaches to the sustainable use of biomass, particularly concerning the balance between food production and bioenergy. The participants emphasized that technological innovation and targeted policy measures are crucial to achieving climate goals while ensuring global food security.
LATAM meeting at GFA Consulting Group GmbH
Also on Friday, the four Latin American BKP projects of the BMEL, three of which the IAK is implementing on its own or as lead partner, met in person for the first time. Three program formats came together at the meeting in the GFA's Berlin office: Agricultural Policy Dialogue, Expert Dialogue and Demonstration Project. The topics on which the projects will work together in future and how regional coordination will be organized were discussed.
The participants were:
- German-Argentine Dialogue on Sustainable Agricultural Innovations
- German-Brazilian Agricultural Policy Dialogue (APD)
- German-Uruguayan Technical Agricultural Dialogue
- German-Colombian training and demonstration project for agroecology