🌿🍅 What do tomato leaves, longevity in Okinawa and some sweets from the Amazon rainforest have in common? They were all on our agenda today at IHC2026 Kyoto. 🇯🇵🌏
🌅 The morning began at 8:30 in the plenary hall, with two presentations that gave us food for thought.
🍅 Qu Dongyu (FAO Director-General) — “Fruit and Vegetable: Global Trends, Innovation and the Road Ahead”.
The key message? The Japanese teach us a lesson in common sense: they waste nothing. ♻️ The world’s problem is not only that we need to produce more, but also that we waste a significant share of what we produce. The solution lies in the smart use of every resource and every harvest. 🌱 “Stop waste” is not just a slogan, it is a strategy. 🌍
🇯🇵 Akiko Ito (NARO – National Agriculture and Food Research Organization) — “Horticulture in Japan: Current Status and Future Prospects”.
One thing surprised us here: horticulture holds a huge place in Japanese agriculture, with vegetables accounting for around 25% of production value. 🥬🍅🥕 In Romania, vegetables and melons account for roughly 16–19%.
It is a difference that speaks volumes. Perhaps it is no coincidence that Japan has one of the longest-living populations in the world — and Okinawa, the famous “island of longevity”, is known for a lifestyle in which vegetables and moderation play an important role. 🥗🌿 Perhaps health really does begin on the plate. 🍽️💚
🔬 Then came the serious work — the parallel sessions. IHC2026 hosts 27 symposia, 20 of which ran in parallel today. What did we pick out for our farmers and for research in Buzau?
🍃 A “hidden treasure” in tomato leaves.
One study showed that tomato leaves — usually regarded as worthless plant residue — can be chopped, dried and turned into powder and pellets, then used as fertiliser. 🌱
Results in lettuce showed a higher supply of nitrogen (NO₃, NH₄-N), potassium and calcium compared with poultry manure, as well as a faster and greater release of nitrogen than the other options tested, including seaweed and poultry manure. ♻️ Today’s waste, tomorrow’s resource.
💧 And a simple but essential reminder: optimal irrigation makes the difference.
Research on greenhouse soils showed how delicate the balance is: too little water leads to salt build-up, osmotic stress and deterioration of soil structure; too much water leaches nitrates deep down and can endanger groundwater. 🌱💦
👨🌾 The message for farmers is clear: correct irrigation does not mean “as much as possible”, but “as much as needed” — enough to control salt build-up, but not so much that we lose nitrogen and cause pollution.
🏆🍅 The poster session — our moment!
VRDS Buzau presented two papers on tomatoes:
🍅 PhD candidate Emilian Mirea, Eng. – “The influence of soil structure on the development and productivity of the oxheart tomato variety Andrada”, a paper selected for the Young Minds Award 🏅;
🍅 Dr Elena Barcanu, Eng. – “Mind the Gap: Aligning Farmer-Driven Selection with Consumer Preferences in Tomato” (consumer-based sensory evaluation of tomatoes). 👩🔬🍅
🌍🤝 Our posters were visited by researchers from all over the world: professors and specialists from Australia, Kenya, Japan and Canada, from Wageningen University in the Netherlands, as well as representatives of Takii Seeds from Japan.
📇 We exchanged contact details, discussed shared research interests and laid the groundwork for possible future collaborations.
🇷🇴🔬 Romanian tomato research is making itself seen in Kyoto!
🩸🌱 Why does biofortification matter — and why is it a global trend?
In the parallel sessions we also attended talks on biofortification, a topic increasingly present at the congress. 🌍 The context is important: iron and zinc deficiencies affect large populations worldwide, especially in developing countries.
🥬 This is where biofortification comes in — increasing the content of essential micronutrients such as iron, zinc, selenium or iodine in vegetables, through interventions applied directly during cultivation. 🌱🧪
🍅 The tomato is one of the most interesting targets, because it is so widely consumed. The work presented showed that soil fertilisation combined with foliar treatments can produce fruit significantly richer in certain minerals.
🌿 The direction is clear: global horticulture is no longer just aiming for “more food”, but for food with higher nutritional value. A subject we are following with great interest for the future of research in Buzau too. 🔬🍅💚
🍫🌳 And finally, a surprise from the Amazon!
At Workshop 6, “Biodiversity from the tropics and subtropics”, moderated by Kaeko Murota of Shimane University, we tasted products made from fruits and plants that few of us had ever heard of:
🍬 “white cocoa” sweets made from cupuaçu (Theobroma grandiflorum), filled with camu-camu (Myrciaria dubia) — one of the fruits known for its very high vitamin C content, exported from Peru to Japan;
🍪 biscuits made from South American ñame (Dioscorea trifida).
🌳🌎 Products from Amazonian biodiversity — proof that nature still hides true gastronomic and nutritional treasures. 💚
🎉🎂🇷🇴 And because this day holds a special meaning, we wish a very happy birthday to Prof. Florin Stănică, PhD, President of the “Gheorghe Ionescu-Șișești” Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, who is with us at this world congress. 🌿🇯🇵
We wish him good health, energy and many more achievements in support of Romanian research! 🔬🌱🇷🇴
🌅 The day ended at 8 pm — in complete darkness, as the sun sets here at around 6:30 pm. 🌙🇯🇵
🇷🇴❤️🇯🇵 From Kyoto, with our thoughts in Buzau. More tomorrow! 🌱🔬🍅
