Thailand Productivity Institute (FTPI) collaborated with the APO Secretariat to organize an online training course on Big Data Analytics in the Agrifood Sector from 17–20 February. The objectives were to understand the concept of big data analytics, facilitate the use of integrated databases in the agrifood sector, and promote sustainable practices to improve the productivity and resilience of the agrifood sectors of members.

Thirty-seven participants from 11 APO members attended along with five resource persons, one each from India, Singapore, and Thailand, and two from the USA. During the training course, participants had the opportunity to learn a great deal about big data analytics in the agrifood sector. India, Thailand, and USA-based case studies on the utilization of big data for soil diagnosis and water management at food production sites were also introduced. In addition, utilizing big data in the food value chain, including delivery, wholesale, and retail to consumers, was described. A participant commented that the sessions were quite detailed and contained a lot of new knowledge. At the end of the course, participants gave presentations on what they learned and solutions in response to their needs for promoting big data analytics in the agrifood sectors of their economies.