NAEGA President Gary Martin, Senior Advisor Sam Bonilla and International Grain Trade Coalition (IGTC) Secretariat Katy Lee travelled to London from June 9-13 for Grain Week, including meetings with IGTC, International Grains Council (IGC), the United Kingdom’s Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) and the Grain and Feed Trade Association (GAFTA). The group took part in a wide range of activities, including the following:
- At the global IGTC strategy session and
the 49th intergovernmental council session of the IGC on June 10 an
intensive focus was placed on the successful work of IGTC and its coordination
with policies of concern to the grain trade. The current IGTC files addressed
at the strategy session and the IGC council session were:
- Crop protection product approvals & residue measures
- Innovation in electronic trading documentation
- Plant breeding innovation
- Harmonization of phytosanitary control methods and the UN International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC)
- Cartagena Biosafety Protocol
- Low level presence
- On June 11, Gary and Katy took part in the annual IGC Conference and Sam represented NAEGA at a meeting of the GAFTA International Contacts Committee. All three travelers attended a reception commemorating the success of 70 years of international grain trade cooperation hosted by the Ambassador of Japan and the IGC Chairman.
- At the IGC Conference workshops on Wednesday, June 12, Gary chaired an IGTC workshop: “A Dialogue on International Progress through Cooperation” at which cooperation between governments and commercial actors to provide for innovation and enhancement of the trade flows were examined in an interactive session. IGTC also provided grain trade expertise and representation at a workshop held by CropLife International on the same day, with a specific focus on trade impacts of regulation on Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) of crop protection products.
The three are preparing final trip reports which will be posted to the NAEGA Member’s Only Website when complete.