February 17, 2008

An open conference with the theme 'Consolidating Co-operation between Europe and Asia on Quality, Organic and Unique Food Marketing' was held at Thammasat University's Rangsit Campus on Friday 8th February to mark the conclusion of the EU-funded phase of the BEAN-QUORUM project.

BEAN-QUORUM EU Asia Link project ends on a high note

An open conference with the theme ‘Consolidating Co-operation between Europe and Asia on Quality, Organic and Unique Food Marketing’ was held at Thammasat University’s Rangsit Campus on Friday 8th February to mark the conclusion of the EU-funded phase of the BEAN-QUORUM project. The EU ambassador to Thailand, His Excellency Mr Hamburger, gave a presentation pointing out the relevance of the project to Commission’s recent thinking on development in the food sector.

The aim of the three year project was to build a collaborative network between European and Asian scientists relating to the marketing of organic, quality and unique food in ways that contribute positively to sustainable rural development.

The project partnerships includes the University of Bologna, Alma Mater Studiorum- the oldest university in Europe-, The University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU) in Austria, the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute in Scotland, Thammasat University Science and Technology Faculty and the Xingjiang University of Agriculture from Urumqi China. BioAgricert, an Italian organic consultancy was also significantly involved in the project. The project co-ordinator, Professor Maurizio Canavari from Bologna, set out to establish a sustainable network to support organic and quality food marketing that involved not only academics but also industry practitioners and regulatory and government bodies.

There were three central features of the project: an exchange of young researchers between the different institutions; a Short Intensive Overseas Programme on organic and quality food marketing held in Bangkok in 2006; and the development of an e-learning opportunity.

Eight young researchers worked for three to four months in different partner institutions. Two researchers came to Thailand and researched the possible income benefits of organic farming in Thailand and the marketing of organic products in Thailand. Two researchers from China and Thailand visited Bologna and worked on market research projects. Two researchers from Thailand and China visited the Macaulay Institute. Professor Bill Slee from the Macaulay institute who co-ordinated this part of the project commented that ‘the evaluation of this part of the project indicated very positive impacts on scholars’ learning, not just from an academic perspective but also from the experience of working in a different country experiencing different cultures and different ways of working.’

The Short Intensive Overseas Programme held in Bangkok in 2006 involved 25 researchers who benefited from inputs from a range of European and local experts, covering all aspects of organic and quality food certification and marketing and rural development. This short course was the basis for establishing arrangements for mutual credit recognition by the university partners to help encourage future exchanges.

The E-learning portal developed uses an open source programme to provide an archive of all the learning material accumulated during the project. Professor Rainer Haas from BOKU, who led this work said: ‘This software offers a wide range of material to the expanding BEAN-QUORUM network. Really valuable information can flow around the network without the movement of people. E-learning methods are widely used in European universities and we are delighted to share these approaches with our Asian partners.

Professor Maurizio Canavari the project leader commented. ‘It is clear that interest and engagement with quality and organic food is growing in Asia as in Europe. But we have learnt that there are important differences in attitudes towards organic and quality food and the development of this project has considerably advanced understanding of these issues.’ ‘We can continue to share experiences through a public website http://www.bean-quorum.net which will be maintained and the social network website http://beanquorum.ning.com. Both will enhance communications among the team and other interested parties in industry and the wider support sectors.’

Although the project is now drawing to a close, Professor Canavari commented on the foundation that had been created for the future: ‘We have established the BEAN-QUORUM network and new members are joining on a regular basis. We see this as the beginning of a consolidated network of researchers who will work with the business sector and NGOs to enhance European Asian understanding about organic and quality food. We are pleased that Thammasat University’s Faculty of Science and Technology is developing a Masters programme in Organic Farm Management which creates scope for international collaboration. This is also an opportune time for developing a network such as BEAN-QUORUM, as the EU is actively interested in promoting the principles of geographical indications of origin for foods in Asian countries and the foundations that we have built will help develop Asian scientists’ capacities.’

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