On November 4th, the International Symposium on Sustainable Development of Natural Fibers was held in Changsha, Hunan province. It was co-hosted by the Institute of Bast Fiber Crops, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences(IBFC,CAAS) and the International Natural Fiber Organization (INFO), focusing on the biomaterials and multi-purpose utilization of natural fibers. More than 200 experts and delegates from 10 countries and international organizations involved in natural fibers fields, including Canada, Greece, the Netherlands, Malaysia, Brazil, Kenya,Tanzania, Nigeria and INFO, as well as domestic research institutions and related companies, attended the conference. The conference was jointly hosted by Dilip Tambyrajah, Secretary General of INFO, and Prof. Zhu Aiguo, Deputy Director of IBFC,CAAS and Chief Scientist of National Agro-Industry Technology Research System for Crops of Bast and Leaf Fiber.

15 domestic and foreign experts introduced the current research progress and diverse utilization of natural fibers in different areas, as well as status and policy of natural fibers in different countries. At the same time, the conference released important scientific and technological achievements, held a signing ceremony for South-South cooperation in China-Africa bast fiber materials, provided an effective platform for academic exchanging. The conference emphasized that under the background of carbon neutrality, it was recommended to comprehensively strengthen  international cooperation of multi-purpose utilization of bast fibers, coordinate international and domestic supply and demand balance, lead the interdisciplinary and high-quality development of the international bast fiber industry, strive to build a win-win partnership, and jointly cope with the common challenges of global bast fiber industry development.

Side event such as round table discussion was organized on November 3rd. Member countries of INFO conducted in-depth communication and exchanging on promoting the development of the global bast fiber industry, coordinating resources from main producing countries, establishing a multilateral cooperation mechanism for bast fiber industry globally, and reaching an agreement on establishing a more comprehensive, effective, and sustainable international cooperation strategy network for bast fiber crops.

By Lyu Tuo(ibfckyc@163.com)