Ag Law & Policy Speaker Series
Monday, November 13, 2006 - Location: King Hall, Room 2008
Time: Noon - 1:00pm
Crops developed using recombinant DNA techniques are now planted by 8.5 million farmers on over 220 million acres in 21 countries around the world. Nonetheless, some continue to oppose the commercialization of these crops and have proposed that marker-assisted selection will make genetic engineering obsolete. The basis of these two types of genetic modification of crops will be described along with their respective strengths and weaknesses. It will be argued that these technologies are complementary and that both will continue to be needed to meet the challenges of producing food, fiber, and biofuels for the global population.
Kent Bradford Professor in the Dept. of Plant Sciences at UC Davis.
Bradford served as the Chair of the Dept. of Vegetable Crops at UC Davis from 1993 to 1998. In 1999 he founded the UC Davis Seed Biotechnology Center and continues to serve as its director. He was awarded the career Seed Science Award from the Crop Science Society of America in 2002 and was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2003.
Wednesday - November 15, 2006 - Location: King Hall, Room 2008
Time: Noon - 1:00pm
Farm subsidy programs have long been contentious both in domestic policy debate and in global policy forums. However, a recent World Trade Organization ruling against U.S. cotton subsidies has thrown a spotlight on an additional problem: the conflict between U.S. farm programs and its obligations as a member of the World Trade Organization.
Daniel A. Sumner, Director of the University of California Agricultural Issues Center and the Frank H. Buck, Jr., Chair Professor in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, UC Davis. He served at the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture as Assistant Secretary for Economics as Assistant Secretary (1992-1993), as well as chair of the International Agricultural Trade Research Consortium.
Thursday - November 16, 2006 - Location: King Hall, Room 2008
Time: Noon - 1:00pm
Current food and farming practices in the U.S. are purported to result in a loss of family farms, a devaluation of rural culture and the erosion of artisan cuisines worldwide. The environment is also a big loser, with trends in soil and farmland loss, water quality degradation, and the spread of potentially toxic pesticides to every corner of the globe. While proponents of industrial farming argue that it is the only way to address hunger and malnutrition, those problems are becoming increasingly intractable with hunger on one end of the malnutrition spectrum that has obesity and chronic diseases on the other. This talk will explore possible responses by farmers, policy makers, and consumers to these issues.
Judith Redmond grew up and went to school in California, earning a Masters of Science Degree from UC Davis with a specialty in biological control of plant pathogens. She is the current President of the Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF) and a co-owner of Fully Belly Farm. Full Belly is a 250-acre diverse, organic farm in Yolo County, which grows vegetables, fruits, nuts, and flowers. Redmond received the 2005 Steward of Sustainable Agriculture Award and the 2005 Flyaway Productions 10 Women Campaign Award.
Time: Noon - 1:00pm
Crops developed using recombinant DNA techniques are now planted by 8.5 million farmers on over 220 million acres in 21 countries around the world. Nonetheless, some continue to oppose the commercialization of these crops and have proposed that marker-assisted selection will make genetic engineering obsolete. The basis of these two types of genetic modification of crops will be described along with their respective strengths and weaknesses. It will be argued that these technologies are complementary and that both will continue to be needed to meet the challenges of producing food, fiber, and biofuels for the global population.
Kent Bradford Professor in the Dept. of Plant Sciences at UC Davis.
Bradford served as the Chair of the Dept. of Vegetable Crops at UC Davis from 1993 to 1998. In 1999 he founded the UC Davis Seed Biotechnology Center and continues to serve as its director. He was awarded the career Seed Science Award from the Crop Science Society of America in 2002 and was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2003.
Wednesday - November 15, 2006 - Location: King Hall, Room 2008
Time: Noon - 1:00pm
Farm subsidy programs have long been contentious both in domestic policy debate and in global policy forums. However, a recent World Trade Organization ruling against U.S. cotton subsidies has thrown a spotlight on an additional problem: the conflict between U.S. farm programs and its obligations as a member of the World Trade Organization.
Daniel A. Sumner, Director of the University of California Agricultural Issues Center and the Frank H. Buck, Jr., Chair Professor in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, UC Davis. He served at the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture as Assistant Secretary for Economics as Assistant Secretary (1992-1993), as well as chair of the International Agricultural Trade Research Consortium.
Thursday - November 16, 2006 - Location: King Hall, Room 2008
Time: Noon - 1:00pm
Current food and farming practices in the U.S. are purported to result in a loss of family farms, a devaluation of rural culture and the erosion of artisan cuisines worldwide. The environment is also a big loser, with trends in soil and farmland loss, water quality degradation, and the spread of potentially toxic pesticides to every corner of the globe. While proponents of industrial farming argue that it is the only way to address hunger and malnutrition, those problems are becoming increasingly intractable with hunger on one end of the malnutrition spectrum that has obesity and chronic diseases on the other. This talk will explore possible responses by farmers, policy makers, and consumers to these issues.
Judith Redmond grew up and went to school in California, earning a Masters of Science Degree from UC Davis with a specialty in biological control of plant pathogens. She is the current President of the Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF) and a co-owner of Fully Belly Farm. Full Belly is a 250-acre diverse, organic farm in Yolo County, which grows vegetables, fruits, nuts, and flowers. Redmond received the 2005 Steward of Sustainable Agriculture Award and the 2005 Flyaway Productions 10 Women Campaign Award.