Asia-Pacific’s premier seed business meeting returns to Bangkok

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Asia-Pacific’s premier seed business meeting returns to Bangkok APSA and THASTA ink agreement to organize the 2022 Asian Seed Congress, welcome ‘home’ the international seed sector Bangkok, Thailand: The Asia and Pacific Seed Alliance (APSA) and the Thai Seed Trade Association (THASTA) are partnering to organize the 2022 Asian Seed Congress (ASC), which is Asia-Pacific region’s premier seed trade and business networking event. On January 20, the presidents of the two associations — Dr. Boonyanat Nathwong of THASTA and Mr. Wichai Laocharoenpornkul of APSA — signed a National Organizing Committee agreement as an initial step in preparation for the grand affair. Also, in attendance was special invited guests Dr. Sombat Tongtao - Deputy Director General, Department of Agriculture (DOA) Thailand and Ms. Viraporn Mongkolchaisit – Executive Vice President, National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Executive Director, Agricultural Technology and Innovation Management Institute (AIMI). Planned for 14 – 18 November 2022, this will be the first in-person ASC since the 26th edition was organized by APSA and the National Seed Association of Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in November 2019. The for-members and by-invitation-only event will feature business meetings, entertainment, a trade exhibition, technical sessions and APSA’s Annual General Meeting, which is scheduled to take place on Thursday the 17th of November 2022. The location of the Congress rotates among APSA member countries yearly in cooperation with a National Organizing Committee (NOC) of the designated host country. This will be the seventh Congress hosted in Thailand. In addition to the inaugural Congress held in Chiang Mai in 1994, the premier seed industry event has also been organized in Bangkok four times in 1999, 2003, 2009 and 2017 and once in Pattaya, in 2011.

The ASC has also been organized in Manila, the Philippines (three times); Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (twice) and once each in Brisbane, Australia; Shanghai, Macau and Kaohsiung in China; Goa, New Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad in India; Chiba and Kobe in Japan; Jakarta and Bali in Indonesia; Seoul and Incheon in South Korea and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. See full list of past ASCs here. Thailand is one of the leading exporters of sowing seeds in the region. In 2014, the Department of Agriculture, National Science and Technology Development Agency, and Thai Seed Trade Association (THASTA) formed a collaboration to set up and implement the Seed Hub Policy. This aims to strengthen Thailand as a hub for breeding, seed production, and seed business in the region. During the implementation of this Policy, Thailand was able to achieve a total export value of 236 million US dollars of corn and vegetable seeds in 2019. The following year, with severe drought in agriculture and even with the impact of COVID19 to the whole value chain of seed industry, Thailand was still able to manage a slightly higher
seed export value of 239 million US dollars, proving the strength and flexibility of the Thai seed industry even in the face of various challenges.

  

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Quote from THASTA President, Dr. Boonyanath Nathwong
“Every time we host the Asian Seed Congress, Thailand has always given that “welcome home” feeling to all our delegates as it is home to APSA’s first Seed Congress.
“As the global seed community comes towards completely overcoming this covid-19 pandemic and reclaim the vibrancy of our industry, it is but fitting to hold it again in Thailand after not being able to do so for two succeeding years now.

|It is also timely that, as your host and the National Organizing Committee of Asian Seed Congress 2022, Thai Seed Trade Association is embarking on a more pro-active effort to support our national government’s goal of establishing Thailand as a regional seed hub.

“We are currently implementing our THASTA 5-Year Strategic Plan to facilitate effective seed movements and trading while promoting training and knowledge-sharing at local, regional, and global levels. Aside from giving you more details about this, we also want to update you on several significant seed industry developments happening in Thailand despite these most trying times.

“We hope to see you all again in Asian Seed Congress 2022 as we continue to make the global seed industry a major driving force that has seen us even through the worst of the pandemic. To all the delegates of this biggest regional event in the seed industry, we cannot wait to greet you all this time, “Welcome Back!”

Quote from APSA President Wichai Laocharoenpornkul
“As an Executive Committee member of both APSA and THASTA, I have much confidence that this coming Congress will be all that we have been missing and more. The relationship between our two associations goes back decades, and each of our foundations are interlinked. Several THASTA EC members and advisors are also active APSA members, and Past Presidents.

“Suffice to say, the Executive Committees of APSA and THASTA have combined experience and expertise totalling many centuries if not millennia, and we can only hope to apply our wealth of knowledge, contacts and resources to meet and exceed all expectations, so as to deliver what we have all been yearning for these past few years, and welcoming you all back to Southeast Asia for an in-person, face-to-face Congress.”

“This will be our first physical Congress in post-Covid times, so we are looking forward to hosting a large crowd. Many things have to be worked out and I am confident that many of the challenges that have kept us virtual since the start of 2020 will have been addressed by then.
“I am confident in both of our Secretariats to make it happen, and I look forward to the process of putting everything together in the coming months.”