On October 22nd, Mrs Verburg, Dutch Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality will open the Sino Dutch Agricultural Innovation and Promotion Center in Beijing, together with her Chinese colleague Minister Sun. The Center is the initiative of Wageningen UR and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Science (CAAS). The aim of the Center is becoming a foothold for all Dutch-Chinese research in the field of food and nutrition. The Center is based at CAAS. Wageningen UR, that already had a representation in China in the field of nature and environment, will manage the Center.
Through its’ representation, Wageningen UR plans to coordinate and intensify its cooperation and contacts with Chinese partners. Focus will be on researchprogrammes in the field of agriculture, rural development and the environment. These three themes are placed high on the agenda of the Chinese authorities. The representation of the Environmental Sciences Group, based in Beijing since 2006, already moved to the new Center a few weeks ago. Expectations are that other Wageningen UR initiatives and other Dutch knowledge institutes will follow soon.
Director of the new Center, and also the official representative of Wageningen UR in China, is Mrs. Tan Shuhao. Mrs. Tan obtained her PhD in 2005, from Wageningen University.