Beijing hosts international conference on agri-food innovation

The 2025 World AgriFood Innovation (WAFI) Conference kicked off in Beijing's Pinggu district on Monday, bringing together nearly 800 participants, including scientists, university presidents, entrepreneurs, and farmers from 94 countries and regions.

The conference was held under the theme "Resilient Food Supply For Agrifood Systems Transformation."

At the opening ceremony, Sun Qixin, president of China Agricultural University, said that climate change, geopolitical conflicts, as well as pests and diseases, soil degradation, and water scarcity pose enormous challenges to agri-food systems, requiring joint efforts from the global community.

Martien van Nieuwkoop, director of agricultural development at the Gates Foundation, said in his keynote speech that China has undergone a remarkable agricultural transformation over the past four decades, making tremendous contributions to resilient agriculture. 

With less than 10% of the world's arable land, China feeds 20% of the global population, he said, adding that this success is not a matter of luck, but the result of sustained policy investment, innovative breeding, and agricultural mechanization.

Artificial intelligence emerged as a hot topic. At the event, Beijing Capital Agribusiness & Foods Group unveiled a collaborative innovation platform for AI-powered livestock and poultry breeding.

"The traditional way of measuring traits is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and not always accurate," said Ma Zhu, head of the science and information department at the company. "With AI, we can collect data such as images that are difficult to obtain otherwise, improving the efficiency of genomic selection."

During the conference, more than 50 parallel forums and side events will be held to explore how science and technology can empower resilient food systems, covering areas such as smart breeding, farm management, alternative proteins, dietary fiber, and farmland governance.

The World Agrifood Tech Expo was also held, where more than 100 leading enterprises and universities showcased their latest achievements in agricultural science and innovation.

One exhibit is a strawberry-picking robot. Its robotic arm is equipped with stereo cameras that function like human eyes, enabling precise distance measurement. Currently, its positioning accuracy is around 95%, and it can harvest one acre of strawberries per hour.

Since 2023, WAFI has been held annually in Pinggu district, establishing an international platform for exchange on agri-food systems and receiving active participation from countries around the world.