MaartenCamps Tackles Agricultural Challenges with Innovative Solutions

Pictured is MaartenCamps, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands. (Photo source: Sina Finance, photographed by Liang Bin)

Sina Finance News “The 2015 4th China International Agribusiness Summit Forum” was held in Beijing on May 17. Pictured above is MaartenCamps, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands.

Below is the transcript of the speech:

Maarten Gamps: Good morning everyone, I am very honored to share my views on agricultural affairs.

We are very pleased to have established close and frequent exchanges with China (including relations at all levels, from the lowest to the highest).

We were very honored to be received by President Xi Jinping in 2014. In the presence of our King, we explained the current state of Dutch agriculture to Chinese leaders. President Xi chose the Netherlands as the first stop of his visit to Europe. During this visit, we also discussed opportunities in China's agricultural sector, and this year our Prime Minister and 17 Dutch companies visited China. Our pledge is that the door has been opened, and we must maintain close ties. Entrepreneurs are willing to actively cooperate with funds, invest in China and trade with China. Recently Huawei opened three offices in the Netherlands, and the CEO of Huawei Netherlands also spoke to us about their vision, mentioning that our open mindset and the innovative atmosphere in the Netherlands attracted Huawei.

For many years, the Netherlands and China have been working hard together. The Netherlands has been continuously reclaiming land to prevent seawater from flooding our farmland. We must adopt a spirit of optimism, cooperation and innovation. This has always been our nation's instinct for survival, because two-thirds of this country's land area lies below sea level. We are not just about tulips; our mindset is one of an open, international economy. Of course, we have many Chinese friends - not to mention that all our cities have Chinatowns, and our supermarkets carry all kinds of excellent Chinese products. We also have a global economic positioning.

Although our country is only 2.5 times the size of Beijing, although it is impossible for us to reach China's 1.3 billion population, nor to have 120 cities with over a million people - our largest city has only 700,000 people - we also cannot achieve China's 7% economic growth rate. The Netherlands is the world's second-largest agricultural exporter, and we are also the world's largest exporter of vegetable seeds and tomato seeds. The Port of Rotterdam connects to destinations across Europe. Now the business data on our website is also particularly extensive. We have an excellent system that encourages all kinds of innovation, hoping that people can share knowledge and innovation with each other. Dutch companies know the potential of China's economy, and this potential is constantly increasing. More than 1,000 Dutch enterprises have already invested in China, setting up businesses and building factories.

China's innovation is also quite impressive. China is already the world's largest economy, and its degree of internationalization is quite good. The Netherlands is China's second-largest trading partner in the EU, and also the EU's third-largest investor in China. More than 500 Chinese enterprises, including Huawei, have already invested in the Netherlands. At the same time, Chinese enterprises' investment in Dutch companies is also continuously increasing, and some well-known Dutch brands have been acquired by Chinese investors.

We face some global challenges. If issues like climate change and food security are not well resolved, and with the world population growing from 7 billion to 9 billion, where will all this food come from? Some say that by 2050, 70% of the world's population will be urban. Including in many countries around the world, how will food be distributed? Do we have enough food? These problems will not simply resolve themselves when the time comes. Trade alone cannot solve the problems. We need to address these issues together through innovation and cooperation. We call this the Dutch solution to global challenges.

The Netherlands' economic policy is aimed at development through innovation and cooperation. It includes cooperation in three areas to create opportunities together, including cooperation among Dutch entrepreneurs, policymakers and scientists. They all openly share their expertise, sharing their expertise as much as possible. And successful cooperation - this tripartite cooperation - is the reason we rank first globally in 9 economic sectors. At the same time, in our innovation activities, there are some very good innovation programs, companies and scientists. These 9 sectors include energy, logistics, life sciences, chemicals, water resources, agricultural products, and horticulture - all of which we place great importance on.

Therefore, our economic centers have also become knowledge centers, cooperating with scientists from around the world. Currently, a Dutch research institution is helping China's chemical industry and extractive industry develop safely. At the same time, we have rich experience in water resources. We now cooperate on every continent. Our engineers and urban planners share with other countries how to deal with flooding, how to scientifically store water, how to treat water, and how to generate hydroelectric power, etc. Chinese dairy enterprises are also cooperating with our universities to improve the quality of their dairy products. One good example is in agricultural products - the Netherlands House plan serves as an excellent platform for cooperation between Chinese and Dutch enterprises, including the China Europe International Business School also participating in our cooperation.

We invest together in agriculture and horticulture, and these investments are long-term. These industries are now among the most innovative in the world. About 40% of Dutch agricultural and horticultural products, including seeds and flowers, are products in which we have strong export competitiveness. At the same time, we are highly competitive in flower stems and agricultural seeds. We have expertise in greenhouse construction, as well as in installation technologies, including irrigation, logistics, information consulting and information communication. I can say that we can meet the food demand brought by a growing population.

China, like other countries, faces severe food issues. This is a global challenge, and the Netherlands has its own set of solutions. We improve lives through agricultural innovation. A Dutch company uses sensor technology to understand crop growth and provide farmers with various operating systems. Dutch farmers operate through computers on their tractors, sometimes using data provided by satellites. Satellites understand the location of each piece of farmland and can also control the use of fertilizer. This kind of innovation has been applied to potatoes and other areas.

At the same time, we also have some blank spaces, which are very important for horticulture. We also use infrared technology so that agricultural products can be grown in office buildings. There is also a new mechanical technology that allows them to develop their own economic fields. Some of our farmers have mobile dairy equipment - instead of farmers going to the milk station, the milk station comes to provide door-to-door service. These boxes contain specialized technology that can protect crops. This box contains bees. Through this kind of innovation, they can reduce or avoid the use of pesticides.

Another example is improvements in packaging to make it more intelligent. For instance, a company can inspect all fresh products. At the same time, this seed company also continuously innovates, and innovation in the seed industry is very important. Tens of thousands - our relevant data and personnel all participate in this research, enabling us to provide a wide variety of seeds to promote agricultural growth. This is also excellent innovation-driven development. At the same time, we can protect seeds from fungi and other bacteria.

We have also carried out a series of projects with local partners to meet local demand for agricultural products. In China, Dutch enterprises have already created a very interesting plan. Scientists from Dutch universities have begun cooperation with China Agricultural University. They are willing to share their knowledge. I believe the food problem can be better solved if we take a series of measures - if Dutch seed companies can invest more conveniently, or if Dutch products can be distributed more efficiently in China, if we can fully leverage the close ties of the past while opening up new cooperative relationships, including new forms of cooperation through e-commerce.

Ladies and gentlemen, since the 17th century, the Netherlands has been constantly hit by floods. This is part of our lives. We have always placed great importance on innovation and cooperation. If our predecessors had not cooperated well in the 17th century, our descendants would not have had the opportunity to cooperate and come to China. I want to address global challenges through a team spirit. China and the Netherlands can join hands. The Dutch government places great importance on innovation and cooperation among government, business and academia, including cooperation projects that complement and promote each other, including cooperation projects with China. I think the most important thing is what I have learned from my Chinese friends and from Chinese people in the Netherlands - that we are all very optimistic people. I hope this optimism of ours can also be well reflected in today's summit forum.

Thank you.