Under the guidance of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and the Embassy of Denmark in China, the Institute of Food and Nutrition Development of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China and the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration jointly held an International symposium, Cooperation on Efficient Use of Food and Reduction of Food Loss, on March 23-24. 

The symposium serves as the kick-off meeting for promoting the 2021 China-Denmark cooperation project: Study on food use, loss and waste. The theme of the symposium was Improving Efficiency and Reducing Waste. Experts and scholars in the field of food and nutrition from China and Denmark were invited to the symposium. They shared 13 excellent academic reports and discussed the following topics: the goals and strategic measures for the China-Denmark cooperation project; the operating mechanisms and main practices of some international organizations in tackling food loss and waste; Danish methods and results related to recycling and reutilizing water resources in the process of food production and animal slaughter; factors that could increase or limit the potential for reducing food loss and waste in China; and development trends related to the consumption of dairy products in China. The symposium set the overall goals and phased objectives for China-Denmark cooperation, in particular 2021’s key cooperative research work and expected results. 

Reducing food loss and waste holds the key to global food security and sustainable development. This symposium is highly significant, as it helped promote in-depth cooperation between China and Denmark in addressing food loss and waste. What’s more, the symposium offered China, a major agricultural producer and food consumer, an opportunity to learn from the valuable experience of developed countries so as to ensure the security, quality and nutritional value of China’s food supply. 

The symposium lasted for two days and featured both online and offline events. More than 60 participants, including experts both at home and abroad, government officials, and business representatives, attended the symposium. (Correspondent: Xu Dongxia)