The guiding idea of the panel discussion, "Fixing the Agri-Food Backbone: Making Advisory and Cooperative Systems Work," was that sustainable agriculture starts with strengthening trust in local communities and connecting producers, cooperatives, researchers, advisory services, the business community, and institutions.

The facilitator, Prof. Aleksandra Nikolić, PhD, shaped a stimulating environment with her excellent choice of questions and encouraged an exchange of diverse experiences among international experts from five countries on three continents:

•         Prof. Bastiaan P. Reydon, PhD, Economic Advisor for Land Reform Settlement Cooperatives, Brazil

•         Markus Peixoto, Ph.D., President of the Brazilian Society of Rural Economics, Administration and Sociology, Brazil

•         Carlos Rydrstorm, National System for Innovation and Rural Development (SINDER), Uruguay

•         Riddler LU, professor, founder and CEO of Beehive Data Technology, Taiwan

•         Silvio Šimon, Ph.D., Head of the Sector for the Implementation of Rural Development Measures and Interventions, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of the Republic of Croatia

Although experiences and agribusiness systems differ, the panelists agreed on several key areas that will shape the future of food production, distribution, and consumption across the planet and in every local community.

Trust, cooperation, respect for local needs, professional management driven by modern technologies, effective exchange of experience, and the ability to co-create innovation are key to further progress. The discussion also stressed the importance of encouraging and including young people and women in decision-making structures at all levels: from farms and cooperatives, through the institutions that support the sector, to the administrations that create public policy.

Sustainability must become part of how we govern. Protecting land, water, and biodiversity, and adapting to climate change, require long-term thinking and solutions tailored to producers' real needs.

Cooperatives are more than joint marketing of products or organizations that supply inputs. When professionally managed and built on trust, they can connect producers with the market, turn farmers into entrepreneurs who understand the needs of all business actors, develop new products, create added value, and strengthen the resilience of rural communities.

The digital transformation of the agri-food sector has begun and is unfolding in different ways, but it always rests on connecting people and knowledge. This allows us to optimize processes and anticipate needs, making the sector's contribution visible in quality of life, environmental protection, and population health. Artificial intelligence, IoT, modern machinery, and digital tools can accelerate modernization, but their success depends on access to expert support, relevant knowledge, and farmers' active involvement in developing solutions. Advisory services must become the epicenter of the new digital system: enabling farmers to take part in the transfer of knowledge and practice, and helping to shape new forms of research and development, such as citizen science and "living labs."

Young people must drive change, not just inherit existing systems. Their competencies and readiness to apply new technologies offer an opportunity for generational renewal in agriculture and for modernizing cooperatives.

These messages connect strongly with the vision of Society 5.0, a society in which digital technologies serve people, communities, and sustainable development. In this approach, innovation is not an end in itself but a means of improving quality of life, competitiveness, and responsible management of natural resources.

AGRICONFERENCE 2026 shows why interdisciplinary dialogue and international exchange of experience are essential for transforming food systems. The future will not be shaped by isolated actors, but by those who can connect science, practice, technology, the market, and social responsibility.

The future of sustainable agriculture is built on cooperation, and innovation begins when knowledge becomes a shared strength.