Newsletter | Danish Research Centre for Organic Food and Farming • March 2006 • No. 1

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Join the Organic Congress 2006
The Joint Organic Congress 30.-31. May in Odense is held by the Danish Biennial Congress in cooperation with 17 EU research projects on organic food and farming. This creates a unique opportunity for communincation of contemporary research in European Food and Farming. The congress will have a full scientific and mediation programme, with a range of supplementary activities to establish and strenghten networks among the participants. These activites includes:
 
  • Satellite symposia
  • Poster sessions
  • Large exhibition

  • Study tours
  • Social events
  • Congress dinner
Registration and full information is available on the congress homepage. Here some selected issues are highlighted.

Topics and themes

The Joint Organic Congress is organised within four main topics, each consisting of three international and one to two Danish themes. Within the 12 international themes several presentations from ongoing EU research projects will be included. Work on the detailed programme is progressing and can be followed on the congress homepage. The topics and themes are described in the following links:

  1. Towards a sustainable Europe
  2. Improving quality of crops, soil and environment
  3. Animal husbandry - health, welfare and food quality
  4. Consuming organics

Dessimination of papers and posters

Papers from the participating EU projects will be presented at the congress. But also contributions from researchers and stakeholders outside these projects are invited.

Papers presented at the Joint Organic Congress will be uploaded and available in the open access archive Organic Eprints. The papers will be made available some time before the conference, so that the participants will have the option to see what is presented and prepare for sessions that have their special interest.

Also, approved papers will be printed and published in the congress proceedings, which all congress participants will receive at the congress. Further, the programme committee is negotiating the possibilities for publication of a special issue of a scientific journal with selected papers from the congress.

Large exhibition

The Congress will include a large Congress Exhibition, that will be a supreme opportunity for producers, processors and allied service providers to show their products and services to the international organic community.

Parallel with the main congress program, the exhibition will be hosted at the congress centre, providing visitors and delegates with ample opportunity to view displays during session breaks. The Congress Program has been structured to accommodate this.

This year we also hope to organize a marketplace in the exhibition area, where farm shops can present themselves and sell their products. Also, the exhibition feature a special, life-sized exhibition on machines and solutions developed in grassroots research by and for organic farmers.

The Joint Organic Congress homepage provides the full details on the exhibition including information to potential exhibitors.

Social events and study tours

Especially with focus on the many guests from abroad, the organizers have planned a number of optional social events and study tours. These include the following:

- In the footsteps of Hans Christian Andersen

The fairytale writer Hans Christian Andersen is known all over the world for his wonderful stories such as “The little Mermaid”, “The Ugly Duckling”, “The Tin Soldier” and many more. Hans Christian Andersen was born in Odense, so when visiting the island Fyn the Museum of Hans Christian Andersen (where the fairytale writer was born) is a “must”.

Therefore, we have arranged a social event on 31st of May (start at 17.00) that includes a guided tour at the Museum of Hans Christian Andersen, a refreshment at a café close to the Museum, a city walk 'In the footsteps of Hans Christian Andersens', and a dinner in cosy assembly rooms close to Odense River. The dinner will consist of mainly ecological food as well as “The Best of Fyn”. Se the further details on the Joint Organic Congress homepage.

- Dinner in Odense on Monday the 29th of May

At 19.30 on Monday the 29th of May we have arranged with a very good chef that he serves an ecological dinner for Euro 30,- (beverage is not included in this price).

- Congress study tour

The Study tour includes a guided visit to Research Centre Aarslev which is a public research institution under the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries. Thereafter, we visit an ecological plant-breeder (Christian Andersen), who has many years of experience within organic farming. And finally, there is a guided tour at tour the Ørbæk Bryggeri, which is a brewery producing both really good ecological beer and soft drinks.

The Congress study tour is arranged on Monday the 29th of May 2006 (12.00 - 18.30) and again Thursday the 1st of June 2006 (09.00 - 16.00).