Agroforum

Agrofoum is an annual agricultural conference, held in collaboration with IESE Business School, that addresses the challenges and opportunities of the rural sector. It serves as a forum for debate, learning, and the promotion of regulations that foster modernization and sustainable growth in agriculture, bringing together companies, institutions, government agencies, universities, agricultural entrepreneurs, technicians, researchers, and other stakeholders.

PROGRAM for May 4th

9:30. Opening

• Welcome address by Prof. José Luis Suárez, Financial Management, IESE.
• Ana Rodríguez Castaño. General Secretary of Agricultural Resources and Food Security of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
• Fermín Bohórquez Domecq. President of Alianza Rural.
• Alonso Álvarez de Toledo y Urquijo. Vice President of Alianza Rural.

10:00. PANEL 1: Livestock and forestry management, and fire prevention. Moderator: Laura Landeta Onieva. Technical Director of the Royal Union of Fighting Bull Breeders.

• Forest management in the face of fire risks. Francisco Carreño. President of the Confederation of Forest Owners' Organizations of Spain (COSE).
• Extensive livestock farming and its role in fire prevention. Manuel Luque. Managing Director of the Royal Spanish Federation of Selected Livestock (RFEAGAS).
• Pastureland and fighting bulls in fire prevention. Borja Domecq Noguera. Jandilla Livestock.

11:00. Coffee break

11:30. PANEL 2: Green energy production and the agricultural sector. Moderator: Paloma Fra Sánchez. Eurofinance Ingenuity.

• Farmers and ranchers, are there still opportunities in renewables? Let's look at the data and draw conclusions together. Prof. Juan Luis López Cardenete. Strategic Management, IESE.
• Photovoltaics and territory. Rafael Morcillo Cazorla. National Association of Photovoltaic Energy Producers (ANPIER).
• Biogas. Management of slurry and other biomass. Rafael Fuentes-Guerra López. Director of Biomass Acquisition at Magnon Green Energy (Ence Group).

12:30. PANEL 3: Biodiversity and carbon agriculture. Moderator: Javier Dorado Soto. Legados Foundation.

• Credits of nature. Prof. José Luis Suárez. Financial Management IESE.
• Carbon capture through conservation agriculture. Emilio González Sánchez. Secretary General of the European Conservation Agriculture Federation. Professor at the University of Córdoba.
• Cork oak plantations: capturing carbon to make the forest profitable. Maite González. Ferticork SL
• Carbon sequestration in agricultural soils and woody crops. Eduardo González Fernández. Deputy Director General for Climate Change Mitigation. Spanish Office for Climate Change. MITECO.

13:30. Conference: Demography and Food in the World. Prof. Javier Díaz Giménez. IESE Economics.

2:00 PM. Spanish wine

4:00 PM. Workshop. Certification and valuation of ecosystem services in the sector. (Location: IESE Business School, BBVA Classroom). Moderator: Paloma Fra Sánchez, Eurofinance Ingenuity

• Analysis of new biodiversity and ecosystem services certification schemes as a basis for their standardization, verification, and recognition within ESG frameworks. Focus on converting these services into certifiable assets, connecting territory, certification, and access to markets and investment.
• Development of new certification schemes for biodiversity and high environmental value. Juan José Moreno Delgado. AENOR.
• International perspective on emerging standards, independent auditing, and global validation. Alfonso Raffin. SGS.

PROGRAM for May 5th

9:30. Keynote Address. The European Investment Bank and the agricultural sector. Josep Oriol Bellot Miana. Bioeconomy Division. European Investment Bank.

10:00. PANEL 1: Olive Groves: Potential for Spanish Agriculture and the Economy. Moderator: David Trujillo, Director of Savills Agribusiness

• Olive oil production and consumption worldwide. Jaime Lillo. President of the International Olive Council (IOC).
• Hedgerow olive groves: development potential in Spain. Juan Vilar Hernández. Director of the Olive Oil MBA in Jaén.
• Will we be able to give olive oil the value it deserves? Agustín Santaolaya, Founding Partner of Grandes Pagos de Olivar.

11:00. Coffee Break

11:30. PANEL 2: National Irrigation: Modernization, Expansion Possibilities, and the Environment. Moderator: José Carlos Caballero Rubiato. Executive Committee of Alianza Rural.

• Success stories and possibilities for expanding irrigation in Spain. Gabriel Sevillano. Water Manager for Agriculture at Acciona.
• Improvements in sustainability through the modernization of irrigation. Diego Bellido Sánchez. Irrigation Community Sector BXII of the Lower Guadalquivir.
• Challenges of coexistence between wetlands and irrigated land. Carles Sanchís Ibor. President of the Governing Board of the Albufera Natural Park.

12:30. PANEL 3: International Trade Agreements and Tariffs. Moderator: Prof. José Luis Suárez. IESE Finance Department.
Foreign trade: a global perspective. Javier Sierra Andrés. Counselor for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food at the Embassy of Spain in Washington (USA).

• Mercosur Agreement: Opportunities and Challenges for Spanish Agriculture. María Canal Fontcuberta. Spokesperson for the European Commission Representation in Spain.
• Mercosur Agreement: The View from the Southern Cone. Wenceslao Bunge Saravia. His Excellency Ambassador of the Argentine Republic to Spain.
• Trade agreements. Ernesto Talvi. Principal Investigator at the Elcano Royal Institute.

13:30. CLOSING

• Prof. José Luis Suárez. Financial Management IESE.
• Fermín Bohórquez Domecq. President of Alianza Rural.
• Alonso Álvarez de Toledo y Urquijo. Vice President of Alianza Rural.

14:00. SPANISH WINE

PROGRAM | REGISTRATION | contact : agroforum@agroforum.es