Ambassador of Denmark to Pakistan Jesper Moller Sorensen has said that Pakistan is a country with agriculture tradition and his country desires to enhance bilateral cooperation in the sector.
While speaking at the International Food Conference organised on Monday, Jesper Moller Sorensen spoke about the Danish experience with agriculture and food.
He said agriculture and farming was one of the most important reasons as to why Denmark still ranks as one of the world’s most prosperous countries. “Export of food and agriculture products accounts for 24 percent of Denmark’s total export to the rest of the world,” said Ambassador Sorensen.
Denmark’s success is based on a coherent and efficient government system that includes political responsibility, an independent scientific risk assessment, efficient control systems and the mandatory requirement of all necessary legislation, rules and standards being in place, he added.
Speaking about future challenges and opportunities, Ambassador Sorensen stated that “Globalisation in food trade will continue as more food will be imported, and exports will increase. The global food supply is going from surplus to shortage as the world population is growing each day.”
“In 2050, the world’s population will be around 9 billion, which is 2 billion more than today. But as consumers’ habits and preferences change in favour of more animal products, we will eat like 12 billion people. That is almost double the amount of food today”.
Ambassador Sorensen also said that he saw significant opportunity for more cooperation between Denmark and Pakistan. He informed the participants that his embassy had started to reach out to the business community back home in Denmark, and that one major agriculture consultancy company participated in the first-ever Danish business delegation, which visited Pakistan last month.
Ambassador Sorensen further commented that “Danish food and agriculture sector possess the abilities and competences to contribute with innovative products and solutions throughout the entire value chain. I believe we have some experiences which could also be useful for Pakistan”.
