Ribbon cutting for the 112th Fieragricola show in Verona

Fieragricola 2016 was inaugurated this morning

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Comments during the opening ceremony by thePresident of Veronafiere, Maurizio Danese, thePresident of the Veneto Region, Luca Zaia, theMayor of Verona, Flavio Tosi, and the President of the Province of Verona, Antonio Pastorello.

“Agriculture in coming decades will be called upon to feed a world population likely to reach 9 billion people by 2050. Meeting this challenge will requires a focus on innovation and sustainability – the guidelines on which we developed this edition of Fieragricola.” So said the President of Veronafiere, Maurizio Danese, during the inauguration today of the 112th Fieragricola Show in Verona, the most important exhibition in Italy dedicated to the primary sector which is scheduled until Saturday 6 February.

The Show boasts more than 1000 exhibitors, 9 exhibition halls, 600 head of livestock on display, the most important international agricultural machinery and livestock brands, not to mention pesticides, seeds, renewable energy, green management and forestry activities.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Forestry Policies, Maurizio Martina, as well as MEP and Member of the EU Agriculture Commission, Paolo De Castro. They were joined by the CEO & Director General of Veronafiere, Giovanni Mantovani, the President of the Veneto Region, Luca Zaia, the Mayor of Verona, Flavio Tosi, and the President of the Province of Verona, Antonio Pastorello.

“Fieragricola is the direct expression of a territory such as the Veneto which is home to 665,000 agricultural companies; moreover, employment in this sector is growing by 23%, even among the younger generation,” said Governor Luca Zaia. “Consumer today demand food safety and certified agriculture such as ours is the best answer.”

For Mayor Flavio Tosi “agriculture is the foundation stone of the economy, especially since Made in Italy is an assurance of excellent in agro-foods all over the world. Yet in addition to exports, we must also safeguard the home market and defend it on a European scale.”

“The agricultural sector is still one of the sectors driving the Veronese economy, the third Italian province in terms of exports and top in the Veneto for livestock numbers, with 57% of the regional total,” said the Provincial President, Antonio Pastorello.