TempAg

On the 23rd of April, Martin van Ittersum and Pytrik Reidsma of PPS participated in the kick-off meeting of a new international research collaboration on sustainable temperate agriculture (TempAg). TempAg is an initiative of several countries, supported by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The network seeks to increase the impact and return on the investments that Members (countries) make in their national research programmes. TempAg’s activities will enable the coordination of existing and new research and technology as well as identify areas of research relevant to scientists and policymakers alike that are currently not addressed at an international level. The overall goal of TempAg is to support  resilient agricultural production systems through the development of new policies and improved management strategies.

Wageningen UR was nominated by the Dutch government as Dutch representative in TempAg. PPS will co-lead one of the three themes, i.e. yield gaps and resource use efficiency. The first workshop in Paris was stimulating. It was concluded that various new countries are keen to be added to the Global Yield Gap Atlas. It was also decided to jointly work on methodological questions regarding identifying and explaining yield gaps in temperate countries.

Link to TempAg: http://www.oecd.org/sti/sci-tech/tempag.htm

Link to global yield gap atlas: http://www.yieldgap.org/