"Green" economy: the model that Denmark wants to export to Argentina

COPENHAGEN.- Wind turbines. Long rows of cyclists await the white light of their traffic lights. Windows on the roofs of houses to make the most of the sunlight. Solar panels. Green terraces and organic gardens.

Denmark claims to be a "green" country, which corroborates some kilometers of its capital. Behind this label, which began with a crisis and has made it a benchmark for sustainability and renewable energies, there is a process involving a state presence, which places public-private partnerships at the forefront of its operations. the most important areas, such as Food Nation (agriculture), State of Green (renewable energy) and Healthcare Denmark (health).

The "Danish model" has become not only a way of life for its citizens, but also one of the axes of its international trade policy and
this week they bring to Argentina the

Queen Margaret II,

two ministers and
a delegation of 30 companies and will be today the central axis of a business forum within the CCK.

"Argentina can copy the Danish model," Danish Minister of Environment and Agriculture Jakob Ellemann Jensen told a group of Argentine journalists, including:
THE NATION– in his Copenhagen office, overlooking the cbads that are not only the perfect setting for a photo, but also for years public pools for the Danes during the summer, intended for the cleansing of its waters. "Twenty years ago, they could not have done it," he said proudly, before pouring tap water to confirm his remarks.

The Ministry of the Environment, the first in the world created in 1971, merged with agriculture three years ago because "agriculture has an impact on the environment and vice versa" explained Ellemann Jensen, arrived in Argentina with the delegation. of the Queen. "We are an agricultural country and we must be aware that our production must be sustainable," he said.

For his part, Chancellor of Denmark Anders Samuelsen stressed
THE NATION Danish companies "have experience and experience
know how in several areas of interest to Argentina: green growth, sustainability, agriculture and food production, water treatment and health. "In this sense, he predicted that this visit would open up" new possibilities "for bilateral exchanges and ruled out that the next elections in both countries may affect these agreements, and the minister of the" least corrupt country in the world " pointed out that "total transparency is essential to ensure a good business climate".

Sustainable agriculture

"More with less" is the
leitmotiv of the agricultural sector in Denmark: more food and less waste, less water and energy costs, less carbon dioxide emissions. With its increasingly efficient and sustainable technologies, ingredients and processes, from sowing to tables, Denmark now produces food for some 15 million people, almost three times its population, with a diminishing impact. on the environment and growing foreign interest. The food sector accounts for 25% of total exports of goods.

According to the UN, about 1,300 million tons of food are lost each year at some point in the value chain. Denmark has sought to minimize this phenomenon from production technologies to domestic habits: from 2006, the Danes reduced their annual food waste by almost 25%.

Rising stars in exports are the sustainable ingredients that can extend product shelf life and reduce food waste.

Chr. Hansen, settled in Argentina since 1964, produces an enzyme that allows to obtain more cheese with the same amount of milk and a culture that extends the validity of dairy products. For its part, Novozymes, which owns the BioAg plant in Pilar with Bayer, offers "biological solutions" for the agricultural sector. "Demand is stronger, but not for sustainable development, but because it improves productivity: the same amount is produced at a lower cost," said Susanne Palsten Buchardt, vice president of the company.

Along with sustainability, Denmark proposed in 2015 to be the first "100% organic" country in the world. About 15% of sales in the country are organic products, the highest percentage of the EU. They have achieved this through a national subsidy plan to encourage crop conversion and campaigns to promote the consumption of this type of pesticide-free food.

Renewable energies

Until 1973, Denmark relied entirely on imported energy from abroad. For this reason, this year's oil crisis was such a blow to the economy that they decided to change their strategy. "We had where to begin the transition: we had no oil, but we had wind and biombad from agriculture," said Iver Hoj Nielsen of State of Green.

Since then, the state has approved taxes to discourage excessive energy consumption and incentives for recycling and the use of renewable energy sources at the industrial and national levels. Almost fifty years later, the "Danish model" has arrived: the economy has grown more than 70% since 1980, but consumption has remained the same. At the same time, carbon dioxide emissions have been reduced, water consumption has been reduced by 40% and almost half of the population has recycled their waste. Denmark's ultimate goal is to become a carbon-neutral country without fossil fuels by 2050.

Part of this strategy was to diversify the energy matrix – with an increasing share of renewable sources -, the phasing out of naphtha and diesel powered vehicles and the incentive to use bicycles. In Copenhagen, 40% of people work on two wheels and expect 50% by 2025.

In 2016, 30% of the energies were renewable (more than half came from biombad and 21% from wind turbines). The intention is that this percentage is 40% in 2020 and 55% ten years later.

In Denmark, they do not only produce energy from wind and sun, but mainly from waste, from agricultural livestock to wastewater. "You have to squeeze the maximum of orange juice so you do not waste energy," said Iver Høj Nielsen. They even use the surplus heat generated by the production of electricity in the district heating networks that circulate in the pipelines for entire neighborhoods, in a country where the stove is lit for at least half of the year. year. .

With Denmark as a model,

Mauricio Macri

launched in 2016 the National Water Plan – which aims to ensure access to drinking water and sewage throughout the country over the next six years – and
RenovAr, with the goal that by 2025, 20% of the electricity demand will be covered by renewable energies. Today, this percentage is 43% in Denmark, the highest in the EU and almost twice that of the following countries, Portugal and Ireland (24%). The intention is for air carriers to produce all electricity by 2050.

Yesterday, before
At his luncheon with Queen Margaret II, Macri said that the economies of Denmark and Argentina were "complementary", that there "is a lot to work together" and gave the "only one". example of wind turbines. Tomorrow, the Crown Prince of Denmark, Federico, will inaugurate a wind farm in Bahía Blanca, next to Pampa Energía and Vestas, the largest producer of wind turbines in the world
landed last year in the country, with Newsan with an Argentinean component plant in Campana for an investment of $ 22 million.

"When we started with wind energy, it was so expensive that an economic point of view did not make sense, but when you're a small country, depending on the world around you and your natural resources. you have to find other solutions. Wind energy was one of them 45 years ago, and we are now able to create wind energy in a way that makes sense for the environment and for the economy. It required a significant investment early and many lessons. they no longer need to learn because we have already played this role, "said the Danish Minister of Agri-Food and Environment.

Trade balance. With an upward trend, Argentina exported goods to Denmark for $ 272 million and bought Danish goods for $ 304 million in 2018, according to the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Foreign. According to the latest available data, in 2017, more than half of Argentina's imports are related to the health sector, while Denmark sells mainly food products. That year, Danish direct investment in the country amounted to more than $ 166 million, while Argentine companies invested about $ 30 million in the Scandinavian country.