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Agriculture is approaching the breaking point: the European Green Deal, the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy, the ongoing process of digitalization and the world’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis will fundamentally change the perception of productivity, sustainability and technology in the agri-food industry. The main trends in the sector will be discussed in detail at the International AgriFood Forum 2020, which will take place remotely on 26-27 November. The event is designed for business, decision makers, farmers and anyone interested in the prospects in this area. Participation in the forum is free of charge, but due to the limited number of people who can join, pre-registration is required.

The organizers of the event – the AgriFood Lithuania DIH and the European Parliament (EP) Liaison Office in Lithuania – emphasize that decisions made today will determine the long-term future of agricultural and food industry. "At the end of October, the European Parliament voted in favor of making the agricultural policy of the EU more flexible, sustainable and resilient to crises. MEPs will seek to ensure that a significant proportion of support is dedicated to combating climate change and ensuring biodiversity. In the past, The European Parliament has advocated solutions that reduce the use of fertilizers and antibiotics in food the production and shorten the food supply chain. In the near future, the funds of the Economic Recovery Fund should reach Europe. These funds can become the basis for the transformation towards a more sustainable agriculture and food production,” Daiva Jakaitė, the Head of the EP Liaison Office in Lithuania, explained.

Lithuanians are developing an artificial intelligence-based technology that can change the established order of the European oyster market. This innovation will ensure a comprehensive, accurate and efficient assessment of oyster quality parameters, which is not yet possible due to the lack of technological supply and limited laboratory testing for oyster suppliers.

"Our goal is to create a technology that would allow all members in the oyster supply chain to not only determine the nutritional properties of the oysters they have, but to also prevent them from serving any that are saturated with heavy metals or infected with bacteria and viruses. These are the main reasons why people get sick, as it is often mistakenly thought that only expired oysters are poisonous," Augustas Alešiūnas, the founder and leader of ART21, explained. Recently, the company was chosen as one of the top Lithuanian startups by Sifted, the Financial Times backed voice of European tech.

The innovative hyperspectral data analysis technology developed by ART21 that aims to promote sustainable agriculture has won the 'New Enlightener 2020' contest in the category of Environment and green energy and will represent Lithuania in the world contest of digital content solutions World Summit Awards 2020.

"We are proud of this recognition, because it gives us the possibility to represent Lithuania in the world contest WSA 2020. We do believe that this advanced technology will significantly reduce the amount of pesticides used in agriculture and will help the European farmers achieve the goals set in European Commission's Green Deal initiative, ” Augustas Alešiūnas, the founder and leader of ART21, explained after receiving the award.

We are pleased to announce the signing of a long-term cooperation agreement with a new business partner - an exceptional Croatian oyster farm "Platforma Aqua".

In the last decade "Platforma Aqua" was the first oyster farm in the Šibenik-Knin region to hire support staff. This is not surprising since it is as big as 8 regular oyster farms and produces 400 tons of molluscs per year. We are happy that our new business partners see oyster farming as a business project that can generate significant financial returns. This is very unusual in Croatia, where family-owned oyster farms dominate. A traditional oyster farm here is run by one or a few family members generation after generation and produces 50 tons of oysters (8 times less than "Platforma Aqua").