The European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Dacian Cioloş, and China Minister for Agriculture, Han Changfu, signed today in Beijing a Cooperation Plan on Agriculture and Rural Development.

Building on established relations between China and the European Union, this Plan will give a new impetus to our partnership and bring mutual benefits by establishing a stronger and closer relationship in agriculture, so that we tackle bilateral and international challenges more effectively together.

Both sides will in particular gain from sharing ideas, best practices, and innovative solutions. We will address issues of food security, as well as our environmental challenges, so as to make agriculture more sustainable and enhance agricultural trade relations. Focusing on common priorities will bring new momentum to EU-China relations in agriculture and rural development. Priority sectors for cooperation may include: food security, international cooperation, environmental-friendly agriculture, organic farming, and food safety.

Commissioner Dacian Cioloş commented: "Agriculture is of crucial interest for both China and the European Union. We share a strong interest in deepening our bilateral cooperation in the fields of agriculture and rural development. This Cooperation Plan is a new step in our commitment to work together to address common challenges – in particular food security, rural development, food safety and climate change. We can meet these challenges by establishing a stronger and closer relationship in agriculture, at bilateral and international level, through very concrete cooperation projects and actions."

Minister Han Changfu further stated: "Agricultural cooperation between China and the European Commission enjoys remarkable achievements and bright prospects. Thus, to promote our bilateral cooperation in the agricultural sector serves our interests of both sides, and represents aspirations shared by China and the European Union. I am confident that with our concerted efforts, agricultural cooperation between China and the European Union will surely realize mutual benefits, win-win results and common development".