The Conference is organized by the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS) Commission “Sustainability Through Integrated and Organic Horticulture”.

In addition to production and sustainability-oriented themes, other topics that will be discussed include fruit quality, economic matters, public relations, marketing, ecological issues, and human health. Highly competent and world-renowned keynote speakers will introduce the different thematic blocks of the conference.
The conference offers an opportunity for researchers to not only to present scientific papers with a peer-reviewed publication in Acta Horticulturae, but also to interact with organic fruit producers and marketing specialists.
There will be a wide range of pre- and post-conference tours offered to the participants, including visits to organic fruit farms and experimental organic fruit farms.
Posters, oral presentations and discussion forums will be organized in plenary sessions and in specific parallel workshops or evening colloquia. The thematic blocks will be:

1. Overview presentations on organic fruit production, including discussions on organic versus conventional production, system comparisons and the world market;

2. Organic plant protection and system stabilization (production and sustainability issues);

3. Organic plant nutrition and soil fertility (production and sustainability issues);

4. Round table discussion on “Perspectives of organic fruit market and production. How can research contribute?”

5. Economy, marketing, fruit quality, health issues;

6. Special workshops on:
- tropical fruit,
- stone fruit
- pipfruit
- berries
- economic matters

Scientific Committee
Robert K. Prange
Franco P. Weibel
Silviero Sansavini
Bruno Marangoni
Antonio Corleto
David Granatstein
François Warlop
Martine Dorais
Rémi Kahane
Uygun Aksoy

Conference coordinators:
Dr. Franco P. Weibel - Head of the Research and Advisory Group on Horticulture at the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) in Frick, Switzerland (www.fibl.org). Franco Weibel is active in different European and international workgroups such as the European Group of Researchers in Organic Fruit Growing, and in the European Fruit Research Institutes Network (EUFRIN). He is member of the European Food Quality and Health Consortium (FQH), and he is Vice Chair of the International Society of Horticultural Science (ISHS) Commission “Sustainability Through Integrated and Organic Horticulture”.

Contact
E-mail: franco.weibel@fibl.org
Tel.: +41 62 865 72 42

Robert K. Prange - Chair of the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS) Commission “Sustainability Through Integrated and Organic Horticulture”. Robert Prange is a Senior Research Scientist at the Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Atlantic Food and Horticulture Research Center, located in Kentville, Nova Scotia, Canada. His research interests are in developing and commercializing more environmentally appropriate post-harvest technologies that reduce chemical use and maintain food quality, e.g. Dynamic Controlled Atmosphere (DCA) storage. He publishes original research and reviews, organizes international conferences, trains scientists and students from around the world and is an international horticultural industry advisor.

Contact
E-mail: pranger@agr.gc.ca
Tel: +1 902 679 5713