The 2024 Summit is of strategic importance at a time when the dairy sector, its markets and stakeholders are directly impacted by geopolitical risks, climate change, rising raw material costs and the depletion of natural resources.

The event will provide an opportunity to share success stories with all those involved in the dairy business (farmers, processing companies etc.) as well as the challenges they face (economic and social crises, changing societal expectations from consumers and ecosystems) to achieve a resilient, innovative and attractive dairy sector.

The representatives of the dairy community will be proactively sharing insights around key topics:

• contributing to food safety (making the French dairy sector more competitive),
• ensuring the viability of the sector (attractiveness, new blood),
• accelerating environmental transition,
• supporting sustainable and responsible production.

This year’s summit will focus in particular on the importance of attracting new blood to the sector. The ageing population of farmers and dairy sector workers and the challenging recruitment situation are factors stymieing our ability to meet the growing demand for milk and dairy products.

“The IDF World Dairy Summit is about knowledge exchange and meaningful conversations on key topics like food safety and quality, nutrition and health, animal welfare, sustainability and climate action. It’s also about networking, about meeting friends and colleagues from the global dairy sector. It’s about asking the right questions and aiming for the best answers that dairy science and technology can provide. It’s about innovations, and most of all, it’s about inspiration. Inspiration for the present and future, as the theme of this edition claims”: Piercristiano Brazzale, IDF President.

“It is a pinnacle event for the French dairy sector. Experts will be on hand to discuss the three main challenges facing the sector: produce greater quantities to meet consumer demand, embrace more sustainable solutions in response to customer expectations and environmental needs and boost our attractiveness to the next generation. We would like to thank our sponsors for organising this event which will be a chance for the French dairy sector to have its say”: Ludovic Blin, President, IDF France.

“We are organising this summit in conjunction with the IDF and we are also one of the main sponsors; for us, it is a unique opportunity to put the dairy sector in the spotlight. It is a milestone event which will act as a global showcase bringing the knowledge and knowhow of the sector to the attention of the various attendees. We intend to prove that the global dairy sector can meet the growing demand for milk and dairy products by producing greater quantities more sustainably in line with environmental goals. This year’s summit is set to be an exciting event bringing together proud and highly motivated stakeholders to discuss key issues and set ambitious goals to achieve a viable and sustainable dairy sector!”: Thierry Roquefeuil, President, Cniel.

“Our cooperative members are proud to be taking part in this important event. It will be an opportunity to meet global players, exchange views, take the pulse of the sector and compare ideas and highlight the positive aspects of our cooperative model, a cooperative which is evolving all the time, with strong local roots and values, in particular regarding sustainability, so as to address tomorrow’s challenges. Another crucial issue for us is to reassure the next generation and pass on our values”: Damien Lacombe, President, Sodiaal (Candia, Entremont, Yoplait).

“At Danone, we believe that solutions can be found within agriculture and we are aligned with the sector’s commitments. We believe that collective action is the only way to achieve this transition. This is why we are proud to provide our support to the Summit taking place in October; a forum rallying all the global players and stakeholders around a joint commitment to a sustainable future for the sector”: Fabrice Salamanca, Global VP Public Affairs, Danone.

“We can be proud of what our sector has achieved in recent years: we have been tackling key issues in the sector for some time with our three types of milk – conventional, organic and goat’s – and we want to raise awareness about this amongst international players. We want to maintain a positive momentum, with a conquering spirit while adapting to the many transitions under way”: Pascal Le Brun, President of the dairy branch, Agrial – Eurial (Soignon, Grand Fermage, Pavé d’Affinois, 300 laitiers bio, Maestrella).

“At a time of great uncertainty in France, this Summit will be particularly valuable because it will make it possible to see the global picture. The world of milk embraces many different trends: there is nothing wrong with the dairy model in France, but we need to compare it with others to understand what consumers expect. This will allow us to continue with our environmentally-friendly production model and do even better!”: Robert Brzusczak, head of public affairs, Savencia.

IDF World Dairy Summit

“Proudly Committed to a sustainable world”

October 15 to 18, 2024

CNIT La Défense – Paris, France

Expected attendance: 1,500

53 international delegations

• Talks and round tables: nutrition, sustainable food, science and technology, health and safety, analyses, economics, attractiveness of the profession, cattle breeding, the environment, the impact of climate change, dairy know-how and culture, marketing and communication.
• Technical visits: dairy farm, processing plant, testing laboratory etc.

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