Agriculture, food , development
Klaas Johan OSINGA has over 20 years experience in international farming. Born and raised on a mixed farm in Friesland (Netherlands), he is a Senior Adviser at the Dutch Farmers’ Organisation LTO Nederland which he joined in 1999, representing the interests of Dutch farmers.
He is a member of several working parties of COPA-COGECA, the EU umbrella of farmers' organisations and co-operatives in the EU. He is Co-ordinator of the ad hoc Copa-Cogeca Network on Economic Analysis. Between 2005-2011, he was Vice Chairman of the Copa-Cogeca Working Party on animal health and welfare. Through the IFAP (International Federation of Agricultural Producers) he was also in regular contact with FAO, Codex Alimentarius and OIE representatives.
A Dutch citizen, Klaas Johan OSINGA grew up at a farm, graduated at Wageningen University in the Netherlands (Main subjects: Marketing, Farm Economics, Horticulture).
He was a Research Worker at regional farms for applied research in the Netherlands. He spent two years working in agricultural development in the highlands of Papua New Guinea (1996-1998). On behalf of Agriterra, a Dutch Agri Agency in agri development, he has carried out 13 assignments in Africa (Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Zambia, Malawi, Namibia), Asia (Thailand, Indonesia, South Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Philippines) and one to Washington DC (USA).