Milan Expo 2015: Agriculture and food safety challenges get the most attention

The 2015 Milan World Expo revolves around the theme of "Feeding the planet, the source of life" (energy for life). The 2015 Milan World Expo will last from May 1 to October 31. It is a comprehensive international Expo after the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, with 148 countries and international organizations participating. The concept of "sustainable" and "innovation" runs through the theme.

Seeking to provide sustainable food security for the world

the 2015 Milan Expo has seven sub-themes, namely food and food supply, agriculture and biodiversity, food supply chain, meal education, food and life, food and culture, food cooperation and development, etc., aiming to explore the world Provide sufficient, high-quality, healthy and sustainable food security, and find effective ways to rationally use resources, protect the environment, nourish humans, and feed the earth, find a balance between human and natural development.

This year's Milan Expo broke the tradition of dividing venues by geographical location or region of each continent. The tour routes were designed according to the theme and the venues were allocated accordingly. All the participating venues faced the same Expo Avenue. The master plan idea shows the various processes of crop cultivation, food processing, food distribution and food trade.

The Milan Expo Park has a total area of one million square meters, and the host country, the Italian National Pavilion, has attracted much attention. The Italian Pavilion covers an area of 13000 square meters. The design concept is "urban forest". The structure is complex and ingenious. The total cost is reported to be 44 million euros. For the first time, Expo Milano will feature food from different countries and seek to address the food needs of up to 9 billion of the world's population by 2050.

The U.S. Pavilion at the Expo is sponsored by private individuals and corporations and covers an area of 35000 square feet with a 7200 square foot vertical farm. When US President Barack Obama announced the US participation in 2014, he said that the United States will show its contribution and innovation in food to improve global agriculture and human health. The U.S. Pavilion will send food vans to tour the venue, offering American cuisine. The U.S. Pavilion also has interactive facilities on obesity, genetically modified foods, etc., while discussing food safety issues in a warming climate.

The China Pavilion covers an area of 4590 square meters, while the China Enterprise Joint Pavilion and Vanke Pavilion cover an area of 1200 square meters and 900 square meters respectively. The theme of China Pavilion is "the field of hope, the source of life".

In addition to national pavilions, Expo Milan 2015 also features a children's theme park, an art and food area, and a future food area that introduces the latest food technology in various countries.

8 million tickets for the Milan Expo have been sold worldwide through an agreement. The six-month Expo is expected to attract more than 2000 million tourists from all over the world. On May 1, the media reported that more than 1 million tickets for the Milan Expo have been sold in China. The organizing committee predicts that 1.5 million Chinese tourists will travel to Italy and visit the Expo during the Expo. It is understood that the Milan Expo tickets according to the age of the ticket buyers, the number of people, visit the date and number of days to set the price of different stalls.

"Sustainable development is a common problem facing the world. I hope people will use the opportunity of the Milan World Expo to study how to balance the relationship between business activities and sustainable development." Italian Minister of Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Maurizio Martina said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua News Agency reporters in Brussels a few days ago that agriculture involves many aspects. Italy is most concerned about people's responsibility for food safety and food safety at this World Expo. Challenges.

When introducing the government's approach to ensuring food safety, Martina said that in Italy, food labels on sale must provide sufficient information to ensure food safety and reliability. If a business violates the regulations, it will be severely punished. He pointed out that Italy's official food safety guarantee system is coordinated by multiple departments and is mandatory. At the same time, the Italian food industry and private owners have also developed a series of standards for different food types. It is the combination of public and private systems for food safety control that ensures food safety and high quality.

Martina also said that in setting the topic of the World Expo, Italy focused on and integrated the United Nations strategy and issues related to food. At that time, it is of great significance for exhibitors to share experience around agricultural science and technology and agricultural innovation, and is expected to promote a better balance between agricultural production and demand.

It is reported that during the Milan World Expo, the exhibitors will sign the "Milan Charter" to make joint commitments on food security and other issues, and submit it to the visiting UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on "World Food Day" on October 16.

Future Supermarket: Big Data Takes You to Picking Vegetables

"Business Week" reported that compared with the 2010 Shanghai World Expo, which captured global attention with large-scale buildings, the 2015 Milan World Expo, Italy, known for its wine and food, focused on the most primitive human needs: eating.
The 2015 Milan World Expo, from the origin to the dining table, the world's smartest head, to solve the problem of "eating.

Since the debut of the first World Expo in 1851, it has been an arena for countries to showcase the use of new technologies and promote human progress. For example, the debut of harvesters 164 years ago promoted the industrialization of agriculture, and the technology of reinforced concrete ushered in the world of high-rise buildings; including airplanes, movies, computers, etc., all took the lead on the stage of the World Expo. This time, countries are showing the use of science and technology to solve food safety, food supply, sustainable agriculture and other issues.

In the first week of its opening, the world's focus was on a "supermarket of the future". Inside the supermarket is a wide and high-rise space. The front and back, high and low screens show the big data (Big data) operation in real time. Who is coming, what products are purchased, and what activities are going on in the market. Just like the interaction, exchange and goods grabbing between people and vendors in the traditional market, with big data, everything is clear at a glance. The 1500 products are displayed on the shelf one by one according to categories. When you want to pick up the orange from Sicily, the screen on your head moves before you touch it. It is divided into two, the screen is drawn, and the coordinates fall on Sicily on the world map. The varieties, producer names and price charts of oranges are presented. The next picture shows the nutrients and calories of oranges, the way they are transported from Sicily, the carbon footprint and the planting method. I don't have to touch it, but I already know it.

Not only fresh products, but also pasta, biscuits and even microwave products. With a wave of his hand at the exhibition area, even the ingredients of biscuits, the factories produced, the calories and the suggestions for eating all appeared. What's more, the glass screen can also teach you how to cook! The glass tabletop in the center of the supermarket is like a jewelry display with models of cooking. After clicking on the side of the table, the glass becomes the screen at the position of the microwave oven or oven in the general western kitchen, with instructions, icons and animations, which cooperate with the model behind to demonstrate the cooking steps, with the effect like shadow play.

"We want to present a seamless simulation of reality, but we don't want a bulky device like Google Glass," said Carlo Ratti, an Italian designer in charge of future supermarket curation and director of MIT's sensor technology laboratory. All the technologies used have only one purpose: to tell the story of food. He reached out to the wine area, and the screen moved. From the production area, the grape species, to the story of the winery, he looked at the bottle of wine as if appreciating a work, "Why can't consumers know these stories?"

2015/6/20 Source: International Livestock Network