Schedule – Global Business Forum Get ready to explore the future of food, bioenergy, and sustainability. IFAMA 2025 brings together global leaders, bold innovators, and next-gen thinkers for two dynamic days of panels and keynotes that challenge ideas, spark solutions, and inspire action in agribusiness worldwide. |
WEDNESDAY, 25–JUNE |
07:30 – 08:15 | Welcome Coffee |
08:15 – 09:00 | Official Kick-Off |
Aidan Connolly – President, AgriTech Capital; President, IFAMA (IRELAND) Marcos Fava Neves – Conference Co-Chair; Professor, Harven Agribusiness School (BRAZIL) Chaim Zaher – Founder and CEO, Grupo SEB (Brazil) Daiana Bisognin Lopes – Conference Co-Chair; CEO, FB Group (Brazil) Caio Carvalho – Director, Canaplan; President, ABAG (BRAZIL) Jacyr Costa – President; Superior Council of Agribusiness, Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (BRAZIL) Guilherme Piai Filizzola – São Paulo State Agriculture Secretary (BRAZIL) PENDING Monika Bergamaschi – Vice-President, ABAG (BRAZIL) Manoel Mário de Souza Barros – President, ALAGRO; Advisor, COSAG/FIESP; Secretary General, Special Committee on Agribusiness of the Federal Council of the OAB; Agribusiness Director, CIN (BRAZIL) Pedro Lupion – Federal Deputy, FPA (BRAZIL) |
09:00 – 09:30 | Keynote Lecture 01: The Future of Farming |
Marcos Fava Neves, Moderator – Conference Co-Chair; Professor, Harven Agribusiness School (BRAZIL) Aurélio Pavinato – CEO, SLC Agricola (BRAZIL) |
09:30 – 10:45 | Panel 01 – From Farm to Food: Insights into Consumer Movements towards 2050 |
Trey Malone, Moderator – Boehlje Chair for Managerial Economics in Agribusiness, Purdue University (USA) Fu Wenge – Director of MBA Education Center, China Agricultural University (CAU); Secretary, World Agrifood Innovation (WAFI) Forum; Founder and Dean, School of Entreprenuership at CAU (CHINA) Carlos Pellicer – CEO, UPL (BRAZIL) |
10:45 – 11:15 | Break |
11:15 – 12:30 | Panel 02 – ESG: Creating Value for Companies |
Nicola Shadbolt, Moderator – Chair at Plant & Food Research, Crown Research Institute (NEW ZEALAND) Juliana de Lavor Lopes – Director of ESG, Communication, and Compliance; AMAGGI (BRAZIL) Norberto Giangrande – Executive Chairman, Minerva Foods (BRAZIL) |
12:30 – 14:00 | Lunch / Case Competition |
Undergraduate and Graduate Finals |
14:00 – 15:15 | Panel 03 – The Challenge of Training New Leaders in Agribusiness |
Jorge Bittner, Moderator – Agribusiness Development Specialist, Gota.ag (CHILE) Michelle Marais – IFAMA Young Board Member, and Business Unit Manager at Urban Farmer Pty Ltd (SOUTH AFRICA) Anathi Makamane – Lecturer, University of the Free State (SOUTH AFRICA) Carlos Guilherme Nosé – CEO & Partner, Fesa Group (BRAZIL) Paulo Rigolin – Vice President of Latin America, Alltech (BRAZIL) Luciano Thomé e Castro – Board Member & Coordinator of Business Administration Course, Harven Agribusiness School (BRAZIL) |
15:15 – 16:30 | Panel 04 – Sustainable Innovations: Achieving More with Less |
Tony Salas, Moderator – Founder and CEO, Shared-X; Founder and President, ACM Consulting (PERU) Allan Gray – Executive Director, Digital Innovation in Agri-Food Systems Lab; Purdue Applied Research Institute (USA) Walter Schalka – Member of the Board, Suzano and Vibra Energia (BRAZIL) Pedro Terencio – Executive Director; Agro Pastoril Paschoal Campanelli S.A. (BRAZIL) Robert Erhard – Corporate Sustainable Agriculture Development, Nestlé (SWITZERLAND) |
16:30 – 17:00 | Break |
17:00 – 17:30 | Closure Keynote Lecture 02 – The Future of Agriculture with the Use of Artificial Intelligence |
Aidan Connolly – President, AgriTech Capital; President, IFAMA (IRELAND) Johann Coelho – CEO & Founder, Bem Agro; Forbes Under 30 (BRAZIL) |
THURSDAY, 26–JUNE |
07:30 – 08:15 | Welcome Coffee |
08:15 – 08:45 | Keynote Lecture 03 – Creating Resilient and Sustainable Food Markets for the Future |
Beth Bechdol – Deputy Director General, UN-FAO (ITALY) |
Parallel Sessions |
08:45 – 10:15 | China-Brazil Executive Roundtable |
08:45 – 10:00 | Panel 05 – Creating Competitive Advantage through Cooperatives and Associations: The Role of Collective Actions |
Decio Zylberstajn, Moderator – Professor, University of São Paulo (BRAZIL) Juliano Tarabal – Executive Director, Federation of Cerrado Coffee Growers (BRAZIL) Brian Briggeman – Professor and Director, Arthur Capper Cooperative Center, Kansas State University (USA) José Antonio Rossato – Member of the Administrative Board, Coplana - Cooperativa Agroindustrial (BRAZIL) |
10:00 – 10:30 | Break |
10:30 – 12:00 | Panel 06 – The Future of Bioenergy |
Bruno Serapião, Moderator – CEO, Atvos (BRAZIL) Arnaldo Jardim – Federal Deputy, Chair of the Special Commission on Energy Transition and Green Hydrogen Production (BRAZIL) Alessandro Gardemann – CEO, Geo bio gas&carbon; Co-Founder, Abiogas (BRAZIL) Andréa Veríssimo – Director of International Affairs & Communications, UNEM: Brazilian Corn Ethanol Association (BRAZIL) Silvia Massruha – President, Embrapa (BRAZIL) |
12:00 – 13:30 | Lunch / Case Competition |
Young Professionals Finals |
14:00-15:15 | Panel 07 – Biotechnology: Pioneering Innovation and Sustainability |
Esteban R. Brenes, Moderator – Professor of Strategy and Agribusiness, INCAE Business School; President, BAC & Associates S.A. (COSTA RICA) Nelson Wulff – Scientific Researcher, Fundecitrus (BRAZIL) Kieran Gartlan – Managing Partner, The Yield Lab Latam (BRAZIL) Marcelo Eskenazi – New Business Innovation Advisor, São Martinho (BRAZIL) |
15:15-16:30 | Panel 08 – From Farm to Table: Responding to consumer demands to produce nutritious food sustainably. |
Thia Hennessy, Moderator – Professor of Agri-Food Economics, University College Cork (IRELAND) Edson Barros – LATAM Marketing VP, Kerry (BRAZIL) Alejandra Rullán – Nutrition Director for Latin America, Kerry (BRAZIL) Sylvain Charlebois – Director, Professor, Agri-Food Analytics Lab, Dalhousie University (CANADA) |
16:30 – 17:00 | Break |
17:00 – 17:30 | Closure Keynote Lecture 04: Agribusiness Message to COP and The Role of Sustainability |
Aidan Connolly – President, AgriTech Capital; President, IFAMA (IRELAND) Marcos Fava Neves – Conference Co-Chair; Professor, Harven Agribusiness School (BRAZIL) André Aranha Correa do Lago – COP30 President (BRAZIL) [Virtual participation] Roberto Rodrigues – Special Ambassador, FAO (BRAZIL) Dan Ioschpe – PENDING |
17:30 – 18:00 | Event Closing |