In Japan, FAO Director-General Highlights Horticulture, Innovation And International Cooperation

25 August 2026, Japan: FAO Director-General QU Dongyu concluded a three-day visit to Japan, where he highlighted the importance of horticulture, science and innovation in transforming agrifood systems and met with Japanese and international leaders working to advance the sector.

During his visit to Nara and Kyoto from 22 to 24 August, the Director-General attended the opening of the 32nd International Horticultural Congress 2026 (IHC2026), where he delivered a Congratulatory Address and later gave a Plenary Lecture to an international gathering of horticultural scientists, researchers and experts. The visit also provided an opportunity to deepen engagement the international horticultural community.

Addressing IHC2026, the Director-General underlined horticulture represents a deep respect for tradition, combined with a constant drive for innovation. He stressed the need for international cooperation to ensure that advances in horticulture translate into practical solutions for producers and communities, especially for small scale farmers and encouraged all stakeholders to think longer and bigger for the development of horticulture.

At the margins of the Congress, the Director-General met with Ryutaro Tao, President of IHC2026 and Dean of the Graduate School of Agriculture at Kyoto University, and Koji Hachiyama, Deputy Secretary-General of the Japan Association for the International Horticultural EXPO 2027, to discuss the future of horticulture.

Japan will host the International Horticultural Expo 2027 in Yokohama, bringing together countries and organizations to showcase horticultural innovation and explore the contribution of plants and horticulture to sustainable development.

Young scientists

During his participation in IHC2026, the Director-General also met four young scientists from developing countries who were sponsored by FAO to attend the congress, encouraged them to devoted to the course of agricultural scientific research

Binh Quang Hoang from Viet Nam, Rona Kay Gabriel Franco from the Philippines, Maria Camila Remolina from Colombia and Pasham Sahithi Reddy from India are among a new generation of researchers working across different areas of agricultural science.

Nara visits

The Director-General’s programme also included a Japanese horticulture experience in Nara, the Man’yo Botanical Garden.

The Man’yo Botanical Garden has plants associated with the Man’yōshū, Japan’s oldest collection of poetry, reflecting the country’s longstanding cultural connection with plants and nature.

Also Read: ASSOCHAM to Host 4th Agritech Summit 2026 in New Delhi on October 26

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