What business leaders are watching at CIIE: Part II

Knut R?ed, general manager of Yara China

What are the highlights of your exhibit at the China International Import Expo (CIIE)? Are you launching any new products, technologies or solutions?

At the first CIIE, We will exhibit a selection of Yara crop nutrition solutions, as we understand the increasing awareness and requirements on food safety and quality among Chinese consumers. Our fertilizers will help to grow healthier and better-quality crops, bringing more values and benefits to consumers. We will also showcase our advanced technologies and solutions on modern farming. Yara's aspiration is to be the leading provider of sustainable crop nutrition solutions, supporting farmer profitability through knowledge, quality and productivity. Our knowledge, solutions and technologies allow the farmer to increase yields, while securing sustainability and reducing the carbon footprint. Some of the techs and solutions have has been widely applied for more than 10 years in Europe, and we are committed to bring them to benefit the farmers in China as well. Our senior company executives will be attending this show and share their knowledge and insights with all visitors.

In terms of deals, what do you expect from the CIIE? Who are you targeting?

CIIE is a great platform for Yara in various perspectives. During CIIE, we'll sign the cooperation agreement with Sinochem Group. We are pleased to further strengthen our partnership with Sinochem who is one of our long-term channel partners in China.

Moreover, we expect to improve public awareness around the important connection between food safety and quality with modern farming and fertilizer. We'd love to continue sharing our knowledge and educate more farmers and users on our advanced technologies and global expertise on fertilizer.

Do you think the CIIE could eventually help drive the development or upgrade of the industry your company is in, and your company's strategy in China?

Participating in CIIE is of great value to our long-term development and success in China. It provides an open platform for communicating our brand and our mission here: fortifying a long-term commitment to the China market.

We hope to leverage CIIE as an effective platform to influence our users, partners, and also the general public, providing them with a fundamental understanding on the connection between food safety and quality with fertilizer, and the values and benefits that Yara could bring to them. It is a platform for enhancing our corporate brand in China.

Moreover, we are committed to helping China improve its modern farming by importing our world-class knowledge and technologies, and by establishing local partnerships. Innovation in the agriculture of the future lies in digital farming, the leading trend in advanced agriculture. Yara has been dedicating in scaling up digital farming world-wide for years and is now bringing our proven technology and solutions to China.

What's your view on China's pledge to further open-up its markets to foreign companies? How would that benefit your business? Any specific examples?

Yara has, and I believe will continue, to both receive while deliver benefits to China's business environment. Since we entered the China market in 1913, Chinese farmers have actively embraced Yara's imported technologies and advanced concepts. Thanks to the open market, we have seized the opportunity to expand our presence among our Chinese customers. Riding the valuable opportunity of the open market in China, we have also established partnership with the state-owned enterprise, Sinochem Group, to launch the MAP (Modern Agriculture Platform), which will help us further develop modern farming in China with our digital farming initiatives.

What is your forecast for China's economy in the next three years? What key issues will you be watching for?

China has invested a lot in the development of agriculture with favorable policies for the fertilizer industry, such as agricultural subsidy programs and poverty reduction projects, which will obviously promote the development of agriculture. On our side, we will also promote our solutions to more farmers and enable them to flourish.

I believe China's economy will continue in its prosperous development with increasingly more multinational cooperation on advanced technologies and concepts. As consumer demands grow for healthier food from quality crops, the market is set to give ample support to the trend of developing agriculture of high economic value.

There is great potential to explore and achieve a win-win situation through in-depth cooperation with China's government authorities, as well as industry players.

We understand that the country maintains high expectations for the balance between environmental protection and agricultural production. It has enacted policy to support this mutual development. And there is another opportunity for us – the consumption upgrade will enhance our ability to develop and import more innovative products and technologies.

In terms of the organization of the CIIE, and the event's liaison services, what impresses you the most? Why?

We are very honored to be invited to participate in the CIIE, and from what I know, it marks a major initiative from the Chinese government to demonstrate its firm support to liberalize trade and globalize economies. The CIIE is proof of its determination to open its market to the rest of the world.

What do you think of China Daily's coverage of the CIIE?

As the national English-language newspaper, China Daily is a voice of China on the global stage. It is a great platform for covering the CIIE's development and communicating its mission.

Its coverage of the CIIE is diverse and well-rounded, including general news and important facts about the Expo to help the public understand more about its importance. In addition, it also covers the highlights from participants in different industries and countries.