G/AG/GEN/215  
G/SPS/GEN/2092  
 
16 February 2023  
(23-1094) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Agriculture  
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original: English  
 
 
VOICES FROM THE FIELD: DIGITAL SOLUTIONS  AND INNOVATIONS  FOR SUSTAINABLE 
AGRICULTURE  EVENT  
SUBMISSION BY ARGENTINA, BRAZIL, CANADA, ISRAEL, PARAGUAY  
AND THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA  
The following document , received on 13 February 2023, is being circulated at the request of the 
Delegation s of Argentina , Brazil , Canada , Israel , Paraguay  and the United States of America . 
 
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1.  In association with the Digital Agriculture Association, several WTO Members sponsored 
a session, "Digital Solutions and Innovations for Sustainable Agriculture", on the margins of the 
November 2022 World Trade Organization (WTO) Committee on Agriculture. The session provided 
insights from award -winning farmers from the United King dom and Nigeria, the Brazilian Agriculture 
Research Corporation (EMBRAPA), and the Digital Agriculture Association. Speakers shared 
the approaches and innovations they are using to create more resilient, efficient, and sustainable 
farms and food systems. P erspectives shared by presenters may help WTO Members better 
understand how recent Ministerial Declarations1 can be put into practice.  
2.  Panellists noted that there has been a significant increase in the amount of data collected on 
farms, as well as in the ways in which data are utilised. These advances allow farmers to make more 
informed decisions regarding seed, fertilizer, and pesticide use, as well as to improve the efficiency 
of water and energy use, all while leveraging market information. Enhanced dat a collection and 
analysis can increase harvests, efficiency and sustainability, while also enhancing profitability. 
Despite these advances, challenges to scaling up digitally -enabled farming tools remain. 
National  polices on data flow and data interoperabi lity, connectivity and enabling infrastructure, and 
enabling regulatory frameworks may drive the adoption of digitally -enabled farming tools.  
3.  One key takeaway from the session was that different farming systems allow farmers to 
sustainably increase product ion. Presenters discussed a variety of tools, including no -till practices, 
cover cropping, and crop rotation that help sequester carbon, retain nutrients and moisture in soil, 
prevent soil erosion, reduce water run -off, and better preserve ecosystem servic es. Presenters also 
stressed the need for enabling regulatory environments that support access to newly -developed 
technologies, as trade barriers in export markets impact farmers ' decisions to adopt 
new technologies. Digitally -enabled farming and precision  agriculture tools need to be available, 
affordable and secure. This event highlighted how these approaches are already helping farmers 
make decisions and improve the sustainability and profitability of their farming operations.  
4.  Our delegations will continue to work with WTO Members to bring diverse and insightful 
perspectives to the WTO. These voices help us understand how the availability and use of 
technologies and tools can help address the challenges we face today and those we will face in the 
future. 
 
1 Ministerial Declaration on the Emergency Response to Food Insecurity, adopted on 17 June 2022 
(WT/MIN(22)/28 ; WT/L/1139 ); Sanitary and Phytosanitary Declaration for the Twelft h WTO Ministerial 
Conference: Responding to Modern SPS Challenges, adopted on 17 June 2022 ( WT/MIN(22)/27 ; WT/L/1138 ); 
and Ministerial Declaration on the WTO Response to the COVID -19 Pandemic and Preparedness for Future 
Pandemics, adopted on 17 June 2022 ( WT/MIN(22)/31 ; WT/L/1142 ). G/AG/GEN/215 • G/SPS/GEN/2092  
 
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  5.  A recording of the session is available at agrilinks.org ( https://agrilinks.org/events/voices -field-
digital -solutions -and-innovations -sustainable -agriculture ) and on YouTube 
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc2DUjttwnE ). 
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